Pokémon: Volcanion & The Mechanical Marvel
by NegaiFreak
Summary: Based off of the upcoming Pokémon movie! When the mysterious Volcanion falls from the sky and ends up linked to Ash, they need to find a way to work together in order to save the "Man-Made" Pokémon, Magearna! Will they be able to accomplish this feat together? Featuring Ash X Mirajane and Gingka X Erza! FULL STORY NOT COMING OUT UNTIL 2017! PLEASE SPECULATE UNTIL THEN!
1. Synopsis

**Hello, everyone! For those of you who aren't yet aware, there's a new Pokémon movie coming out this July in Japan and will hopefully get dubbed by December! Known as "Volcanion & The Ingenious Magearna" for the moment, I'm really excited to see it. All Pokémon movies have plenty of enjoyment to them, and with the recent trailer that I just saw, I got to thinking, why not try my own rendition of it? **

**With that, and the idea from SpiritReaper42 for another battle scenario, I've decided to do my own crossover version of the film once it comes out in the dub. However, I've decided to provide you guys with some info regarding this story. Like "Rainbow Rocks: The Omniversal Crossover" and "Friendship Games: The Omni Force Crossover", this story is going to based around the actual movie itself. Secondly, it will feature characters such as Gingka Hagane from Beyblade, and Erza Scarlet & Mirajane Strauss from Fairy Tail. That's right; the "Resolve" team is back! **

**Furthermore, the story takes place after Fairy Tail's Tartaros Arc and from what I can tell, after Pokémon's Team Flare Arc. With that, there's also going to be plenty of Ash X Mirajane and Gingka X Erza in this story. So for those of you who don't enjoy those pairings, you don't have to read this.**

 **I know leaving you guys with this basic synopsis of my story plans doesn't seem like much, but I'd like to make it up to you with another battle scenario coming off of the one from SpiritReaper42 in the last chapter of "Visitors"! Please enjoy!**

 **SCENARIO**

 **-a blue portal appears out of nowhere-**

 **Ash: Whoa!**

 **Gingka: *** **narrows eyes** *** It's that rift again…**

 **Team Spirit: *emerges from the portal***

 **Mirajane: Hey, it's Spirit Reaper! *** **waves to him** *****

 **Erza: *** **smiles** *** How are you feeling?**

 **Spirit Reaper: Feeling better actually. Sorry about my attitude last time, but you know... lots of thinking since how Natsu released the demon after beating me.**

 **Ash: I'm sure you had to do a lot of that…**

 **Pikachu: *** **nods** *** Pika pi…**

 **Gingka: *** **turns to Team Spirit members** *** Didn't you guys help him out with that?**

 **Nightwing: Nope... we just stayed out of it, so he can think for himself...**

 **Inuyasha: Like how Logan would think about that one time... *receives a hard elbow to the stomach* OW! *glares at Wolverine ***

 **Wolverine: One more word... and it won't be this elbow... *lets claws out***

 **Gingka: *** **grimaces slightly** *** Yikes… What's his deal?**

 **Tommy: *chuckles* Like we said, he doesn't make any friends except for the people in the X-Men...**

 **Mirajane: Well, we should really thank you for helping stop Spirit after he went all berserk against Natsu…**

 **Ryu: But the one person you should be thanking for helping Natsu is Raiden...**

 **Erza: Of course. *** **turns to Raiden** *** Thanks for saving Natsu, Raiden. *** **bows to him** *****

 **Raiden: I did not intend on saving him... My only priority is within Team Spirit... *pulls out murasama* I do it if I am given an order... Dragneel's life is none of my concern...**

 **Erza: *** **tick mark appears upon her forehead** *** What was that?**

 **Gingka: *** **cringes in fright slightly as he notices the scary aura wafting off from her** *** Uh… Erza?**

 **Erza: *** **summons sword into her left hand and points it at Raiden** *** You take your words right now, or I'll-!**

 **Spirit Reaper: *gets in front of Erza* Calm down, Erza. Don't start a fight you can't win. Trust me, Raiden is far stronger than you, me, and everyone in this building. He may be a cyborg but he's also a ninja and he can carry a building size weapon and use it against the enemy.**

 **Tommy: Plus the murasama can cut through anything with ease...**

 **Erza: Ergh… *** **reluctantly puts down sword** *** Fine…**

 **Nightwing: Anyways, we should get to the point to why we're here.**

 **Ash: *** **blinks in surprise** *** Yeah, why are you here?**

 **Pikachu: Pika, pika…**

 **Spirit Reaper: Erza and Mirajane... how about a rematch? *gets into battle stance***

 **Erza: Another match against us?**

 **Mirajane: My, my. Looks like we're gonna be fighting together again. *** **smiles brightly** *****

 **Ryu: There's more to it... He's going to pick one of us to team up with him to face both of you.**

 **Inuyasha: And some of us are getting tired of Spirit hogging all the challenges... *receives another elbow from Wolverine* OW!**

 **Wolverine: Bub... we didn't even team up with him at the time...**

 **Raiden: I do not challenge any fighter unless if they are worthy...**

 **Ash: *** **crosses arms** *** Jerk…**

 **Pikachu: Pika… *** **sighs** *****

 **Spirit Reaper: So shall we have a rematch?**

 **Mirajane: Of course!**

 **Erza: We're ready when you are.**

 **Spirit Reaper: Great! Now get ready to face not only me, but also the legendary Power Ranger... Tommy Oliver!**

 **Tommy: *stands beside Spirit Reaper* I'll take on Erza, and you take on Mirajane. I wanna show Erza how capable I am of holding weapons myself. But for now, I'll fight her until I need to morph.**

 **Erza: Is that so? *** **requips into Heaven's Wheel armor** *** Then I'll get to see just how durable you are before then…**

 **Tommy: Trust me Erza, I have two morphers. And if you can beat my Green Ranger powers, the get read to face the pure power of the White Ranger.**

 **Erza: Then let's get started!**

 **Ryu: This will get interesting...**

 **Nightwing: Power Ranger and Alicorn Reaper VS S-Class mages from Fairy Tail... What could top that? After all, we're only showing what Team Spirit is all about.**

 **Wolverine: This better be fun to watch...**

 **Inuyahsa: If it's not fun... then things will get ugly...**

 **Raiden: *holds onto the murasama* I will be ready for what comes at the end...**

 **Gingka: Let's hope things turn out better than last time.**

 **Ash: Go get 'em, Mira!**

 **Pikachu: Pika pi!**

 **Mirajane: *** **morphs into primary Satan Soul form** *** All right… It's time to really see if this reaper can tame a demon…**

 **Tommy: Alright... Are you ready, Spirit Reaper?**

 **Spirit Reaper: A reaper is always ready. Tommy Oliver... Let's rock it!**

 **END SCENARIO**

 **Hope everyone enjoyed that little scenario to start things out! Since Pokémon movies are generally over an hour, I assume I'll be splitting the movie into three parts, along with an epilogue. Until that time comes, you can speculate on ideas in the Omni Force forum or community! See you guys later!**

 **QUOTE**

 _ **Some things won't change, Ash. Like my feelings for you.**_

 **~Mirajane Strauss,**

 **To Ash in "Ash and Serena! Getting One at a Dance Party!"**


	2. PROLOGUE

**Hello, everyone! With the newest Pokémon movie released in Japan, I figure holding you guys over with a short little prologue and a scenario would hold you over. Keep in mind that this story will be rated T for some thematic elements, considering there are Fairy Tail characters thrown in here. However, you might be surprised to see that it's not the case in this little starter…**

 **You'll see what I mean. Enjoy!**

 **VOLCANION & THE MECHANICAL MARVEL**

Waves crashed softly upon the shores of a large island in middle of the sea. The landmass was literally a jungle of tall trees that stood tall with life and had three towering volcanoes that breached over the overcast of white clouds. Flocks of birds flew out upon the sounds of grunts and groans from afar. Crashing into the bark of a white tree was Ash Ketchum, who was looking evidently battered as blood dripped down from his head. He came down to the ground on his hands and knees, breathing heavily out of fatigue, while a figure loomed over him.

"Come on dude!" a male voice pleaded, enticing him to look up, "You gotta do better than that!" he added as the boy saw who he was, being a teenager who was wearing a hooded, red vest that had a zipper and was sleeveless. Along with that, he sported blue jean shorts, sandals, and bandages wrapped around his torso with an x-shaped scar upon his chest. Developing a determined expression, the Pokémon trainer willed himself back up onto his feet, aiming his right hand at his current foe as it sparked with electricity.

"Lightning Style: Shock Palm!" he exclaimed, palming him right in the chest, sending a wave of energy through his opponent's body. He grinned while thinking he made a direct hit, but then saw the smirk upon the Devil Fruit user's face.

"That won't work," he stated, much to his surprise as he gasped, "I'm rubber!" he noted with a wide smile. Before the raven haired boy could inwardly scold himself for forgetting, he was punched three times by his sparring partner, falling back down to his knees as more blood trickled down his face. Watching from afar was an old man with two very distinguishing traits: his round glasses and facial hair, the latter of which was arranged embattled across his lower jaw. He also had a scar over his right eye while wearing just a plain t-shirt, shorts, and sandals, along with a large silver hooded cloak that had its hood down. He smiled upon noticing the beaten boy get back on his feet, ignoring the pain as he wiped the blood from his head.

"Rayleigh, this isn't fair!" he complained to him, getting his attention as he perked up, "I can't even hurt him with my attacks!" he pointed out as he was evidently becoming frustrated with how things were going. The man just laughed loudly in response, causing him to arch an eyebrow in confusion.

"Don't act like such a spoilsport, Ash," the former pirate advised while giving off a reassuring grin, "If you want to do this," he began, "you have to some kind of experience," he told him, making him grimace in realization.

"I know, I know…" he replied, looking his right hand to see his fingerless glove stained with dry blood, "It's just…" he continued ashamedly, "when I first discovered my Lightning Style by accident," he kept going, causing the two there to listen on in wonder, "I didn't really anyone else finding out about it other than my teammates," he confessed as he closed his extremity into a fist, "But then I realized that I wanted to get stronger myself in order to fight with my friends," he declared with a serious expression in his eyes.

"Then let's get to it!" Luffy responded, reeling his right arm back, "Nothing gets ya learnin' better that doin' stuff!" he added, while the Pokémon trainer cringed slightly "Gum-Gum…" he began, closing his hand into a fist before throwing it out, "PISTOL!" he exclaimed just as his partner crossed his arms over his face in an attempt to block it. A cloud of dust emerged afterwards, quickly dissipating as the old man walked over to check on his newest student. Once the veil fully cleared, a grin came across his lips.

"There it is," he noted. Opening his eyes after blocking the attack, the raven haired boy gasped to see his arms up to his elbows coated in black, appearing to have gained density before the coloring went away from his body.

"W-Was that-?"

"Yep," Rayleigh answered, interjecting his pupil's stammering question, "You've gained the ability to use Armament Haki," he stated as he started to smile, "I'm also impressed that you managed to do it in such a short amount of time," he mentioned, making him blush sheepishly out of flattery.

"Naru said he's really good with learning new things like this," the Devil Fruit user chimed in, placing his hands at his hips while chuckling, "I don't think we oughta' be surprised," he added as the former pirate nodded in agreement.

"Now we should focus on maintaining that Haki of yours," he told his student, who looked back at his hands in wonder, "It shouldn't take too long, considering the time you took to unlock it," he pointed out, starting to walk off. As he watched both him and his Omni Force teammate go, Ash closed his hands into fists before taking a look at the Fairy Tail guild mark upon the right pectoral of his short-sleeved jacket.

' _I'll get stronger for them…_ ' he inwardly stated, ' _I'll get stronger for everyone!_ ' he declared to himself, raising his right hand up into the sky before giving off the sign by pointing his index finger up while sticking his thumb out to the side, expressing that he'd be watching over his friends, even if he couldn't see them for the moment.

 **PROLOGUE**

The sound of pistons pumping filled the air as a giant airship started flying away from a large plateau, which had been littered with a few craters as a conflict had conspired there. Many Pokémon in the area were somewhat injured as they lied on the on the ground and groaned in pain. One creature in particular overlooked the scene from the giant, ring-shaped tree at the edge of the plateau, clenching his teeth together in frustration.

" _Tch,_ " he scoffed angrily, hurrying down from the small hill, " _I can't believe I let this happen…_ " he muttered, taking a great leap before finally reaching the base, landing down with a cloud of dust to follow. The beings around watched it dissipate, amazed to see his form. He was a primarily maroon, quadruped Pokémon with blue and yellow markings, having large, pointed ears with blue insides and bright blue eyes. Additionally, he had bushy yellow eyebrows and a yellow mandible. There were spike-protrusions on each cheek that extended downward over his lower jaw. His body had two oval segments separated by a thinner, blue portion. The front portion the body was larger, and he has two large, arm-like cannons on his back. These cannons were held together, thus forming a ring. Each cannon was separated into three segments by bright blue lines, and each segment had a single blue dot and short, blunt growth. The topmost segments also had four small, yellow bumps around the end. On his chest were four yellow, diamond-shaped markings. There was a thin, yellow band around each of his leg joints. The upper portions of his legs were black and smaller than the large, red lower portions. Each ankle had a short, blunt growth, while each foot had three yellow claws. He finally had a short, tapering tail with a blue stripe on top.

"Leeoh…" a Litleo moaned in plea, starting to tear up a little, as were most of the other Pokémon who had been hurt from what appeared to have been a brutal attack on their home.

" _Don't worry,_ " the mythical creature reassured while looking to see the airship far in the distance, " _I'll get her back,_ " he declared in a promise, unlatching his cannon-like arms from each other before aiming them towards the ground, opening them as if they were nozzles. They then expelled bursts of steam, propelling him up into the air as he flew after the ship, determined to get the being that had been taken.

 **END**

 **Wowee! There's sure a lot going on! Ash is learning how to use Armament Haki from Luffy and Rayleigh, and there's a certain creature in pursuit of a giant airship…**

 **That aside, this is gonna be what'll hold you over until the movie actually is released. I'll be working on "Compassion" for the remainder of the summer and then a long hiatus begins in terms of writing for me, since I'm heading back to college. However, I think it would be nice to leave you guys with a continuation of the scenario from SpiritReaper42, who I'm sure will be providing us with more fun stuff in the future.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **SCENARIO**

 **Spirit Reaper: *teleports appears behind Mira with both hands together***

 **Mirajane: So fast…!**

 **Erza: Stay on guard, Mira! *tries to slice Tommy with her swords***

 **Tommy: *blocks Erza's attack and kicks her in the gut***

 **Erza: Ergh! HAH! *attempts to strike him again***

 **Tommy: *dodges and grabs her arm* Take this! *hits her with a chop and a kick***

 **Erza: Guh! *falls down on her face***

 **Ash: Erza!**

 **Pikachu: Pika pi…**

 **Ryu: Tommy is no slouch when it comes to martial arts. He is the best at 7 different styles of martial arts itself.**

 **Gingka: Really…**

 **Nightwing: Aside from how pure he is, it's another reason why he became a power ranger in the first place.**

 **Mirajane: *reels right arm back, about to punch Spirit Reaper***

 **Spirit Reaper clone: *appears out of nowhere and uses magic to stop Mira***

 **Mirajane: What?!**

 **Spirit Reaper: *smirks and activates power* Got you now! Hadoken! *shoots fireball at her***

 **Mirajane: *gets struck* GAH!**

 **Ash: Mira! *pulls out Poké Ball***

 **Erza: Heaven's Wheel… *dashes forward while a multitude of swords are summoned* …Scattered Petals! *remaining swords rain down on Tommy***

 **Tommy: Whoa! *dodges but gets hit by the next attack* Ergh! *rolls to the ground***

 **Erza: *requips into Black Wing armor* Now do you yield? *dashes back over, about to slice him again***

 **Tommy: No chance! *kicks sword away and frontflips over her* I'll take that... *grabs sword***

 **Erza: Tch…**

 **Gingka: How did Spirit Reaper do that fireball thing by the way?**

 **Ryu: The hadoken isn't easy to master but with enough energy and training, it isn't so hard for him to try.**

 **Inuyasha: If you can't master the move, then don't try it at all is what Spirit said...**

 **Mirajane: *dispels fireball before racing out at Spirit Reaper* Take this! *punches him with all her might***

 **Spirit Reaper: GAH! *falls on his back***

 **Mirajane: Darkness Stream! *summons multitude of black tendrils to race out at Spirit Reaper***

 **Spirit Reaper: *teleports and summons scythe***

 **Gingka: She missed… Dang…**

 **Ash: *clenches teeth while holding Poké Ball tightly***

 **Erza: *requips into non-armored set of clothes with dual swords* HAH!**

 **Tommy: *clashes swords with Erza* You're pretty good... but how about this?! *punches her with an uppercut and sends her down with a roundhouse kick***

 **Erza: GAH!**

 **Gingka: Erza! *pulls out sword* Hey, this isn't fair! He's using HER sword against her!**

 **Wolverine: And what's wrong with that? *lets claws out right at Gingka***

 **Gingka: *grimaces slightly***

 **Raiden: *shakes head* Mutants...**

 **Wolverine: *glares at Raiden* Don't push me, bub...**

 **Spirit Reaper: *slashes Mira and tries to swing a punch***

 **Mirajane: I don't think so! *punches him right in the face***

 **Spirit Reaper: Ow! *rubs cheek* I felt worse, but this is close...**

 **Mirajane: *grabs Spirit and throws him down***

 **Tommy: It's over! *tries to swing another kick***

 **Erza: *catches his leg* You were saying? *hurls him away***

 **Tommy: Whoa! *falls into Spirit as they both crash***

 **Ash: All right!**

 **Inyasha: So much for going at the normal stage...**

 **Nightwing: They're not done yet... I know it...**

 **Wolverine: And here comes the real fight...**

 **Spirit Reaper: *stands and helps Tommy up to his feet* You alright?**

 **Tommy: Yeah I'm good. She's too strong, I barely gave her a bruise... *pulls out morpher***

 **-Erza and Mirajane land down on the ground-**

 **Erza: It appears that we're both too strong for you individually at the moment.**

 **Spirit Reaper: *smirks and spins scythe* You're both right, but this was round one. Tommy... what time is it?**

 **Mirajane: *widens eyes in surprise***

 **Tommy: *grins while looking at both Erza and Mira* It's Morphin Time!**

 **Ash: Uh oh…**

 **Tommy: DRAGONZORD! *morphs into the Green Ranger***

 **Ryu: Can she even try to beat the Green Ranger?**

 **Raiden: *watches without saying anything***

 **Erza: I'll take that challenge! *sticks out swords at him***

 **Tommy: *blocks Erza's sword* Nice try... *sends her away with a kick and swings a punch at her***

 **Erza: Guh…! *falls down in pain***

 **Mirajane: Erza!**

 **Spirit Reaper: *hits Mira with a spin kick* Never let yourself get distracted... *puts power into fist* Shoryuken! *sends her away with a jumping uppercut***

 **Mirajane: GAH!**

 **Ash: Mira! All right, that's it! *reels arm back***

 **Erza: *gets up and swings her swords at Tommy wildly***

 **Tommy: *dodges and starts punching her* Is my power too much for you?**

 **Erza: Ergh! *throws out a punch towards him, requipping into her Giant's armor***

 **Tommy: Agh! *falls on his back* I thought so... *jumps back up and blocks her next punch***

 **Nightwing: Just as I thought. The more armor she gets, the more power she's received, despite already receiving plenty of damage...**

 **Inuyasha: She does know how to swing a sword real fast... well almost as fast as Raiden's...**

 **Erza: *requips into Purgatory armor with black mace* Now you'll witness my true power!**

 **Tommy: Another armor and sword, huh? Then I'll have to us mine. DRAGON DAGGER! Now! *summons dagger***

 **Mirajane: *punches Spirit Reaper away***

 **Spirit Reaper: *falls on his face hard but jumps back up* Alright Mira, now you're making me want to get serious... *takes bracelets off wrist and lets blue fire flare* And I appreciate that...**

 **Ash: Greninja, let's go! *throws Poké Ball, releasing Greninja onto the field***

 **Greninja: Neen, ja!**

 **Mirajane: Ash, what are you-?!**

 **Ash: I wanna help! Plus… I wanna show these guys that we've got some power, too!**

 **Gingka: Same here! *jumps in and pulls out his sword***

 **Pikachu: Pika, pika pi! *has cheeks spark out of excitement***

 **END SCENARIO**

 **I hope you guys liked that! Expect the full movie to come by the holidays, along with me finally getting Pokémon Sun and Moon!**

 **See ya later!**


	3. PART I

**Hello, everyone! Excited for more Pokémon action from me? Sorry for the lack of updates by the way. I've been really unmotivated due to what's been going on in my life lately. Not to mention, I'm having too much fun playing both Sun and Moon! They're the best games ever!**

 **Ahem. Onto the story, I wasn't sure about actually doing this. I thought the latest Pokémon movie was gonna be just as generic as they've always been, but this one actually exceeded my expectations with how marvelous it actually was. Yes, there will be a few changes to this adaptation considering that Erza, Gingka, and Mirajane will be a part of the journey our heroes are on. And yes, the story is T-rated solely because there's Fairy Tail-esque elements. Oh boy…**

 **Well, enough about that. Time to get into this monster of a story! Hold on tight as we blast our way through this!**

 **VOLCANION & THE MECHANICAL MARVEL**

 _ **The world of Pokémon! Brimming with beauty, variety, and majesty! As the most mysterious and magnificent creatures on this planet, there are over seven hundred species of Pokémon! And they can be found wherever one looks!**_

 _ **Pokémon have many different skills and abilities. And through a phenomenon called evolution, they're able to grow and change!**_

 _ **Most Pokémon and people live happy and peaceful lives together as friends and companions.**_

 _ **And there are the Pokémon trainers, who join forces with Pokémon as battle partners, displaying their skills in competitive arenas everywhere. And because of the strong bond between trainer and Pokémon, a new, powerful phenomenon has arisen. During battle, a trainer's Key Stone can have a particularly synchronistic reaction with a Pokémon's Mega Stone. This results in a temporary, but profound increase in the power of a Pokémon. This transformation is known as Mega Evolution.**_

 _ **The mystery of Pokémon… Perhaps it is that mystery that exists at the very heart of the world itself…**_

White clouds stretched over the Kalos sky beautifully, when suddenly, the bridge of an airship breached through them, going higher up into the air. Its pistons pumped rapidly as it continued its course forward, having propellers and rockets to fly. Within the bridge were two pilots; one man and one woman. The male was a broad-shouldered, tan skinned person with a tough physique, having short black hair. His outfit was made up of black gloves, boots, pants, along with a short-sleeved black and purple shirt that included a red neck ornament that resembled shoulder pads. His partner had messy red hair underneath a black beret, donning a steampunk look with a light purple top that had a black gurney and suspenders. She too had black boots and black gloves, including a wristband with a peculiar, dark purple stone embedded into it; the same as her co-pilot's on his left wrist. The two continued to fly their aircraft until they both heard the sound of a beep, enticing them to look up at the radar above their windshield.

"Hm?" the male of the two uttered, seeing that a blinking red icon was closing in on the arrow to indicate the ship's position, "I've got it on screen," he said, causing the woman to let out a chuckle.

"Whaddaya know…" she muttered, glancing back to see a container entangled in chains, "Coming back here to get it, huh?" she guessed as she folded her arms over her chest. The one beside her stood up and headed over to the door, letting her take command, while a faint light emitted from the capsule. Outside behind the airship, the red mythical creature suddenly emerged from the clouds, continuing to blast steam from the nozzles of his arms in order to fly. He soared onward after the vessel, ceasing his firing of steam as he fell onto the platform of its stern.

"AAAHHH!" he bellowed angrily before clamping his arms back together. At the door to the bridge was the tan skinned man, who merely grinned at the creature's presence.

"I don't think so!" he retorted, holding up two enlarged Poké Balls in his hands, while the wind blew threw his short hair, "We're not gonna simply hand it over!" he declared as he tossed the containers up into the air. They popped open, and the light from them poured out onto the platform before the being, coming into form and dissipating to reveal an Alakazam and a Glalie.

"Ala kazam!" the former shouted, taking a tight grip on the spoons in his hands.

"Glay lee!" the latter exclaimed as he floated about.

"RRAAH!" their opponent roared, raising up his front right leg, ready to attack. All of a sudden, the bracelet upon their master's left wrist opened up to reveal the dark stone embedded into it, having a curved shape. He crossed his fingers over it, making it glow an ominous pinkish purple.

"Mega Wave!" he yelled as a holographic sphere with the same curved shape inside suddenly appeared over the jewelry. The same kind of illusion appeared over his two Pokémon as well, who appeared to be in pain at the moment. Their trainer stuck his arm out, making several streaks of the dark energy go to them, suddenly surrounding them within a swirling veil. The mythical creature beyond them watched on, hearing their agonized cries inside the vortexes. However, once they ended up dissipating, the monsters before him looked drastically different. The Psi Pokémon gained a large white beard and his mustache became larger and white. The armor-like sections became bulkier, and his upper body section was now slightly shorter to reveal his thin stomach. His head had become diamond-shaped, but he kept its four spikes. Additionally, he gained a large, oval, red organ in the center of his forehead. His lower legs became longer and slimmer, and his feet became skinnier and resembled talons. To top it off, he gained three additional spoons, which he was levitating in the air in his meditative stance.

"Kazam…" he uttered upon the completion of his transformation, as his eyes glowed an ominous purple. The one beside him also underwent a drastic change. His mouth extended to the length of his face. The lower jaw was all black except for two light-blue, conical, icy spikes. The pupils in his eyes were now red instead of black, and the horns on top of his head had been partially turned into ice, with the addition of a third horn on his forehead.

"Glay… lee…" he growled as his eyes glowed ominously, "GLAAYY!" he bellowed, charging forward and slamming into his enemy's head with all of his might, while he stood his ground, clenching his teeth as he struggled to push him back. He then noticed Alakazam floating up beside them, readying his spoons as they were cloaked in a pink aura above him.

"Ala kazam!" he suddenly shouted, shooting his utensils towards his adversary, who unlatched his arms and blocked them with his right as they clinked off. While he was distracted against two foes, the man at the door tossed something towards him. It expanded out into a circular band, which wrapped around his front left leg and sealed it with a click. Taking notice with a light grimace, the mythical creature saw that another was being thrown at him, jumping up and pressing it down against the platform with his front right leg, clamping his arms back together in the meantime.

"Use Freeze-Dry!" the co-pilot commanded. A light blue ball of energy then formed above Glalie's head, with two beams of light blue energy each connecting to the horns on his left and right. Then a beam of light blue, white, and purple aura was shot from the ball, striking his enemy at his legs and freezing him up in a block of ice. Afterwards, the Face Pokémon had four light blue orbs appear at the end of each of his horns, spinning around quickly and causing two blue rings to form around his body. He slammed into his frozen opponent with brute force, breaking the connection he had to the platform as he was sent hurdling towards the earth.

 **PART I**

Sunlight seeped through the leaves of the large tree as Ash Ketchum was running along the thick branches with his Pikachu, taking hold of the end of a rope to hang their drying clothes. Clemont Lighten's Aipom Arm had pulled it up to him, allowing him to tie it down firmly to an open branch.

"Pika!" the Electric type squeaked as his master had retrieved the line.

"Great!" he said, setting it onto the wood tightly, "All set!" he cried out to the ones below, being the Lumiose gym leader and Serena Monet.

"Thanks for the help, Ash!" the former of the two there replied in gratitude as his device reeled itself back into his bag.

"Here, Serena!" Bonnie Lighten chimed in as she brought over a white, fluffy outfit with her Dedenne, "This one, too!" she requested, handing it off to the performer before she put it onto the drying line.

 _ **This young man is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town, who wants to be a Pokémon master! He and his partner Pikachu, along with his friends, are continuing their training journey.**_

After securing the line completely, the raven haired teen rushed down to the ground with his partner, where all of their teammates were waiting. Greninja, Talonflame, Hawlucha, and Noivern were prepared to get into action, while Braixen, Pancham, and Sylveon were practicing their performance routine, as the latter made rings of fire with her wand-like branch for them to leap through beautifully. Bunnelby, Chespin, and Luxray were lounging around in the sunlight, along with the mysterious green being known as Squishy, whose core glowed a bright white as it absorbed the luminosity in the air.

"Uroo?" it squeaked in confusion as it looked back to see the scientist and the Omni Force member getting their teams together.

 _ **And today, it's time for some Pokémon battle practice!**_

"So you're ready to go, huh?" a familiar voice guessed, catching the attention of the Pokémon trainer as he looked over to see a young man with shaggy, tall, and spiky red hair beside a Scizor with a shoulder strap that had a Mega Stone upon it. His trainer wore a blue headband that had a Pegasus and two wings upon it on his forehead and had a black shirt underneath a short, blue jacket with long, rolled-up sleeves. Also, he was wearing brown fingerless gloves; one of which had a strange, brightly-colored stone embedded into it, a pair of dark blue pants, and black boots over red socks. The white scarf around his neck was long and had shredded ends while on his two belts; red and brown in color, he carried with him a pouch, a Zero-G launcher, and a sword sheathed away in a sky blue hilt, which had the image of a Pegasus' head carved into it. To top it off, a red mark was stamped upon his upper left arm.

"Yeah, I totally am!" Ash responded with a pump of his right fist, "And I'll be sure to battle you next!" he declared, causing him to smirk. However, he then took notice of two other people from afar appearing to be training with a Dragonair, an alternate colored Phantump, a Bisharp, and a Carbink. One was a scarlet haired young woman with brown eyes, having a slender, voluptuous figure. Her attire consisted of a white, sleeveless blouse, a blue skirt, black boots, and diamond-shaped, silver earrings. She had the same mark in blue stamped onto her arm in the same spot as the beyblader's as well. With her was another young woman with flowing white hair, having some of it tied and pinned up above her head. She was a well-endowed, slim woman with a yellow Chinese dress over her form and black sandals upon her feet. Her mark was seen through the flaps of her attire, being on her left thigh in white. Seeing the latter female caused the raven haired teen to blush slightly, but then grin as he turned to face his traveling companion.

"Clemont, don't hold back, okay?" he advised to him.

"Pika, pika!" Pikachu agreed excitedly.

"Holding back won't be what we do!" the Lumiose gym leader declared in response as Chespin shouted in agreement, catching the attentions of the two females from afar as they trotted over with their teammates.

"Hm," the raven haired teen concurred, nodding.

"Looks like another day for Ash," Erza Scarlet noted with a smile as she stood beside Gingka Hagane, folding her arms over her chest.

"Good luck!" Mirajane Strauss cheered, waving her right arm. The scientist pushed his glasses back up to his eyes, making them shine for a moment before raising his right arm into the air.

"Now Bunnelby, I need your help!" he called out, enticing the Digging Pokémon to jump forward.

"Bun!" he squeaked as he landed, "Bunnell…bee!" he shouted, getting into a ready stance.

"Let's go, Noivern!" the Pokémon trainer beckoned to the Dragon/Flying type behind him.

"Vuh, verrnnn!" he screeched in agreement, taking off into the sky and soaring overhead.

 **SONG: Stand Tall**

 _ **I stand tall 'cause I know I'm a winner…**_

 _ **You've met your match, yeah, I'm no beginner…**_

 _ **No beginner…**_

 _ **Gotta catch 'em all!**_

Clemont issued the initial command, as his Normal type leapt up and created a golden sphere from between his ears. The sphere then split into several balls of mud, which he fired at his flying opponent. He quickly reacted and emitted powerful sound waves from his ears, coming into contact with the mud and making them explode into a black cloud of smoke. The burst of wind caused the fluffy outfit on the clothesline to fly off, being caught by Bonnie before it could get dirty.

The Sound Wave Pokémon dove down and had his hands cloaked in a green, claw-like aura, swinging them both out at his foe. However, he caught them skillfully with his ears, followed by hearing another order from his trainer, enticing him to jump and spin around, enveloping both him and the wyvern-like creature in a vortex of wind. The latter of the two there had his ears glow a bright blue though, causing his opponent to widen his eyes in realization too late as he was struck by the powerful sound waves he emitted, knocking him out of the wind and onto the ground. He tried to stand back up, but felt dizzied and fell down, landing on his back in a daze. Chespin immediately went over to see if he was all right, only to find that he had indeed fainted.

 _ **I stand tall 'cause I know I'm a winner…**_

 _ **Knock me down, I'll just get up again…**_

 _ **You've met your match, yeah, I'm no beginner…**_

 _ **Pokémon…**_

 _ **Pokémon…**_

 _ **Gotta catch 'em all!**_

The Spiny Nut Pokémon then stepped forward, placing his hands at his hips as he was ready to go into battle. However, Clemont had other plans as he called for Luxray to enter the fray instead, much to the dismay of the Grass type, who fell over. His replacement charged and leapt up at Noivern, attempting to swipe at him with his front right paw as electricity sparked off of him. His opponent dodged it, flying away before dashing back at him, zooming by the clothesline and causing it to be blown wildly along with Dedenne. Bonnie managed to take hold of the fluffy outfit, while Serena gripped the line tightly, keeping it from shaking anymore.

 _ **You've met your match, yeah, I'm no beginner…**_

 _ **Pokémon…**_

 _ **Pokémon…**_

 _ **Gotta catch 'em all!**_

The Gleam Eyes Pokémon released multiple bolts of yellow electricity from his body, causing its body and the surrounding area to glow yellow as everyone looked on surprise. His adversary had to come to a halt in midair to avoid getting struck by the electricity, followed by his trainer calling out for Pikachu to enter the field of lightning. Once he ran in, his own body glowed a bright yellow. Ash then issued another command, making him form an orb of electricity upon his tail. He jumped up and fired it down at his foe, but was surprised to witness him actually consume it in his mouth, followed by him releasing several streaks of lightning from his form. _ **  
**_

 _ **I've got my friends beside me!**_

 _ **I'm keepin' my eye on the ball!**_

 _ **With the wisdom of years to guide me…**_

 _ **I'm gonna catch 'em all!**_

The lion-like creature then zoomed out towards his foe as he was panicked by the electricity flying his way, being surrounded by the energy before ramming into the Mouse Pokémon head on, knocking him down onto the ground. Fortunately, he just slid across it, stopping before his trainer as he developed a serious look on his face. All of their friends were cheering excitedly for the battle, but from afar, Squishy perked up to see something peculiar in the sky streaking down, widening its lone eye as it appeared to be coming closer. Meanwhile, the match continued as the Lumiose gym leader commanded for his partner to dash forward within his electrical cloak once more. The opposing trainer also called out an order, as his Electric type had sparks emerging from his cheeks before jumping up, making his tail glow a silvery white and releasing an abundance of electricity as everyone awed the sight. He then swung his appendage down onto his enemy, being at a deadlock with him as electricity flew across the area, blowing by the clothesline as the girls there struggled to keep it maintained, while the boys were enjoying the bout. The green being lying on the rock noticed the stray object from the sky was getting closer and closer, becoming panicked as it shook. The humans watching the battle from afar also felt a certain unease in the wind, widening their eyes to see what was coming as their friends on the battlefield had yet to take notice. It suddenly slammed down right where the deadlock was, creating an explosion of dust that enveloped the entire area. Unbeknownst to anyone else for the moment, a green, metal band was now around the raven haired teen's torso.

 **END SONG**

The sound of coughing filled the air once the dust started to settle as the clothesline had completely come undone from the blast, with a dress being right over Serena's form.

"NO!" she screamed in dismay after yanking it off of herself, revealing that her hat had been blown off as well, "I'll have to rewash _all_ of these!" she complained, holding the clothing in her hands, while Bonnie and Dedenne got themselves up as well.

"Too bad…" the former concurred with a worried look, "Did something just fall out of the sky?" she asked, evidently confused as to what happened.

"Huh?" the performer uttered out of confusion

"Is everyone all right?" Erza asked, now donning Heart Kreuz-styled armor over her upper body out of protectiveness, as Clemont was right beside her.

"I-I'm fine…" he stammered, spooked by what just happened as his Pokémon gathered around him.

"What about Ash?" the beyblader asked, concerned for his Omni Force teammate as was the take-over wizard beside him.

"Ash!" she cried out into the small veil, which began to subside.

"Uh…" the teen inside groaned as he slowly opened his eyes, surprised to find himself lying in a large crater on his stomach, "Hey, Pikachu?" he uttered, quickly glancing around to try and find his partner, spotting him lying at the edge of the new crater, groaning in pain, "Pikachu!" he cried out as he got up, rushing over to him, "You okay?" he questioned, while Mirajane ran over to check on the Electric type as well.

"Pika…" he grunted, slowly getting back onto his feet as the two humans came to his aid. All of a sudden though, the band around his trainer began to glow a bright purple, followed an electric line that extended behind him.

"Huh?" the white haired woman uttered in surprise, seeing him suddenly get pulled back as he tried moving forward, "Ash, what's wrong?" she asked, taking hold of his left hand with her right. Without warning, the line holding him suddenly sprang back in an instant, taking him with her in loud yelps. They banged into something red as the breasts of the Satan Soul user squished into the Pokémon trainer's face, making him blush madly.

"Oh boy…" Gingka muttered upon noticing, placing his hand over his face, while the requip mage beside him grimaced. His teammate's cap had been knocked off during the sequence, as the band that was around his torso was attached to another one that glowed before their lights went out with a click, allowing him to fall back onto the ground.

"Ugh…" he groaned while on his knees, looking up to see his crush's chest, remembering how it had touched him as his blush grew redder, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" he apologized repeatedly, bowing to her over and over. She laughed nervously at his gesture of kindness, knowing that it wasn't his fault in the first place, while the Mouse Pokémon just rolled his eyes out of exasperation, heading down to them.

"What is that?!" Clemont's voice suddenly chimed in as he was quite shocked. Everyone else looked down and gasped to see what was nearby both people, while Pikachu went over to them.

"Pika pi!" he squeaked to his master, who had put his cap back on, adjusting it slightly. He then turned, widening his eyes and gasping to see the figure beside them, being the red, mythical creature as he was shaking his head to regain his composure. He took notice of the human male next to him, who was evidently bewildered by his presence as he blinked rapidly. All of a sudden, the beast unlatched its arms and aimed the left one at him.

"Huh?" he uttered as the nozzle of the appendage opened up, making him arch an eyebrow out of confusion. Before he could say anything else, the creature unleashed a torrent of water onto him, blowing him back across the ground. "WAAAHHH!" he screamed while tumbling.

"Ash!" Mirajane cried out, immediately rushing over to him with Pikachu once the blast subsided with a trail of wet ground left from it. Without warning, the band around the raven haired teen's waist glowed again with the electrical line, reeling him back at the creature in a loud yelp before he banged into his front left leg again, making both of them grimace out of agony. The glow then went out with a click, allowing the Pokémon trainer to fall onto the ground again and roll over.

"What is that?" Erza asked, having taken notice of the ring around her friend's waist. The beyblader narrowed his eyes in suspicion as he wondered what was going on as well. The red being latched his arms back together, turning to face the one who was somehow coming back to him.

" _Look, human…_ " he began to grumble without even opening his mouth," _how many times are you gonna bump into me?!_ " he asked him angrily, sounding quite annoyed.

"Hey… you can talk!" he realized in response, completely stunned as were the others.

"Pika!" the Electric type said out of shock, while the take-over wizard had her mouth gaping open.

"It's telepathy!" the scientist concluded at the edge of the crater, adjusting his glasses.

" _Well?_ " the creature questioned to the Omni Force member before him. He then looked down and noticed the band around his torso.

"Ah!" he gasped out of surprise, shocked to find it upon him.

" _Wait… that's…!_ " the creature began to realize upon stepping back, also noticing the band around his front right leg. Both he and Ash began to tug away at the rings, with the former using his teeth to try and pry it off, while the latter just tried pulling it with his hands.

"What is this?" he asked between failed attempts, gnashing his teeth together, "Ergh!" he grunted, "It's stuck!" he yelled as both Gingka and Erza slid down into the crater.

"Here, lemme' help," the beyblader offered, taking hold of the band and tugging at it as well. The requip mage did the same, but their efforts seemed to be fruitless as the ring wasn't even budging.

"Huh?" Clemont uttered as he recalled his friend being drawn to the creature by the electrical line earlier, having his Aipom Arm reach into his bag and pull out another device. He pushed up his glasses to place it over his eyes, gasping at what he saw through them. "Amazing!" he exclaimed, seeing a line that connected the two bound beings together, "It's an electromagnetic pulse!" he noted, catching the attentions of the ones within the crater.

"A what?" the scarlet haired woman questioned, tilting her head to the side.

" _Tch,_ " the red creature scoffed, trotting away to the edge of the crater," _I've got no time for this…_ " he muttered as was heading out. All of a sudden though, his band glowed, and the electrical line reappeared.

"WAH!" the Pokémon trainer yelped as he was suddenly yanked away, knocking his Omni Force teammate down by accident upon being reeled in again and banging into the mysterious creature as he was climbing out, hanging onto his leg once the glow subsided, "Er…" he groaned out of agony.

" _Stop bangin' into me!_ " the creature shouted, tossing him away to the ground.

"WAH!" he shrieked, hitting the ground again on his stomach, "Ugh…" he groaned once more until he noticed the glow and electrical line again, making him stand up immediately and grimace, "Er, ergh!" he grunted, trying to resist the band's pull as the Fairy Tail girls and Pikachu tried to get to him, only to be too late as he was yanked off the ground once more, "WAAAHH!" he screamed, hitting the being's band with his own before the glow went away, as they were both standing at the crater's edge.

" _Knock it off already!_ " the mythical creature demanded with an angered glare.

"I'm not doing anything!" he responded pleadingly, waving his arms in a placating manner.

"It's the EM pulse!" the Lumiose gym leader chimed in, causing them to glance over at him, "An electromagnetic pulse is flowing between those bands!" he told them, surprising the rest of the group as the Mouse Pokémon, Gingka, Mirajane, and Erza ran out of the crater to stand beside the two who were apparently bound by the bands.

"Huh?" Serena uttered in confusion, standing beside Bonnie as Squishy hopped over to them, "What does that mean?" she asked.

"Basically, they're being linked together by an invisible force!" Clemont explained as a response, making them gasp out of shock.

"Electromagnetism…" the beyblader realized, placing his hand at his chin in thought.

" _Oh, that's just great…_ " the mysterious being grumbled, about to head off.

"Ash, can't you absorb electricity like that though?" the Satan Soul user suggested to him, not noticing the creature about to leave.

"I'm not sure…" he replied honestly, suddenly his band start glowing again, "Uh, hold on!" he cried out to the being he was attached to, noticing that he was racing off hurriedly, "Ergh!" he grunted, tugging at the band on his waist, only to fail as the electrical line appeared and pulled him away again, "Wah!" he yelped, tumbling across the ground, "Cut it out!" he yelled before banging into his leg, "Are you… listening to me?!" he questioned, completely dirtied from being thrown all over the place within such a short span of time. The others jogged and watched as their friend was being taken away, stunning all of them.

"Ash…" the performer said out of disbelief. Erza retained a serious disposition however, closing her hands into fists.

"We need to follow them before they get too far," she advised, "Ash's Pokémon should be fine with flying after him," she added, gesturing towards them as they all nodded in agreement.

"I'll go," Mirajane chimed in, rushing forward to their surprise, "You pack up here and meet me wherever I find him!" she told them, suddenly enveloping herself within a bright purple light. Once it dissipated, it revealed that her eyes had become darker and her eyelashes grew larger, with a dark, thin marking in a light zigzag-style crossing her right eye vertically. Similar markings were present above her right breast and on both of her bare thighs. Her hair became wilder, jutting upwards and getting curlier, with the front ponytail having grown longer, and her ears enlarged, extending backwards and gaining pointed edges, bearing resemblance to those of the fictional elves. She also gained sharp canine teeth, and her lips became covered in dark lipstick. Her forearms and hands received noticeable changes, becoming covered in scales and each sprouting a fin-like protrusion on its outer side. She also grew a large, stocky tail seemingly made of metal plates or scales, getting smaller and smaller near its end.

Her clothing also changed, with her Chinese dress attire being replaced by a dark, skimpy one-piece suit, which revealed her arms and legs and is open on the front and the back, exposing most of her belly and wide cleavage. Such clothing had golden-colored edges taking on spiky shapes, and her similarly spiky collar was tied around the neck by a cravat tie. Her shoulders were tied in thin belts protruding from her one-piece suit, and her feet were covered by matching, high-heeled, thigh-high boots, which were decorated by lighter motifs on their upper parts, taking on the shapes of jagged blades pointing downwards on the front of her legs, and on the lower parts, in correspondence to her ankles and feet. She also donned a pair of gauntlets covering the back parts of her transformed arms. A pair of bat-like wings sprouted from her back before she took off into the sky, going into pursuit of her beloved.

Elsewhere in a very intricate city, the airship had arrived at the docking platform by its walls where a boy, a man, a Slurpuff, and an alternate colored Gengar were waiting. The former was wearing a blue overcoat over his royal-like garb, having blonde hair and blue eyes while donning white gloves. To his left was the man who had light purple hair with a beard, wearing a brown outfit that gave off a steampunk look. In his gloved right hand was a staff with the Mega Evolution symbol carved atop it, also including a dark stone at its center. The young one beside him stepped forward to see the two pilots coming down the loading platform with the now unchained canister.

"Ah!" he exclaimed excitedly, marveling the sight of it. Meanwhile in the forest, the mysterious creature was still racing along as Ash was keeping up with him as best as he could.

"Slow down!" he pleaded, almost out of breath as he grabbed his torso, "Man, my stomach hurts…" he complained as he was evidently pained from having to run for so long.

" _Quiet, human!_ " the mythical being demanded, continuing to trek onward," _This is none of your business!_ " he stated angrily, about to charge into an array of rocks, much to the shock of the one behind. He bashed straight through them, leaving a cloud of dust as the Omni Force member had to slow down and catch his breath while coughing, only to find the band around him glowing and the electrical line reappearing.

"UWAAHHH!" he shrieked as he could feel himself getting pulled in again. He quickly started moving his legs faster to keep up. "Huh… huh… huh!" he breathed while pursuing the red creature, who suddenly unlatched his arms and pointed them at the ground, unleashing steams from the nozzles to propel himself upward. The one bound to him had no way of closing the distance between them, leading to the line pulling him up into the air. "WAAAAAHHHHH!" he screamed before he clanked onto the creature's leg, hanging onto it tightly as he saw the place they were heading towards, being the intricate-looking city, "Huh…" he breathed, relieved that he didn't have to run anymore, but was now faced with an even more stressful situation.

"Yummy time!" Jessie, James, and Meowth exclaimed before feasting on their deserts while on the balcony of a café in the city, sitting at a table together. Their treats were like cogwheels and gears, which they ate with forks. "Man, that's delish!" they all proclaimed afterwards.

"WAAAHHH!" a familiar voice screamed, catching their attentions as they recognized it. They looked out to see the red creature with the raven haired teen flying through the air, suddenly heading towards them. Steam billowed out and blew the trio away in a yell, filling the building and shrouding it in a large veil. The patrons inside and the customers were astonished and saw the trainer being tossed off of the mythical being, sitting on the floor.

"What are you doing?" he asked, about to stand back up as the creature turned away.

" _Because of you, I can't keep my balance!_ " he yelled in response, blasting off once more with steam from the nozzles on his arms.

"Uh, not aga-! WAH!" Ash screamed, interjecting his own sentence as his band glowed again with the electrical line appearing and pulling him up in an instant.

"That's the twerp!" Team Rocket exclaimed simultaneously, blinking out of confusion before glancing at one another. Overhead, Mirajane saw the trail of steam the being was leaving behind, chasing after it with a determined expression in her eyes. Back at the docking bay, the apparatus of the containment brought down from the airship opened, revealing what was inside. It was a metallic, bipedal creature that was made up primarily of spheres. Its head was a medium-sized sphere with a slight point in the back. Around its head was a gear with seven teeth, but the gear didn't cover its chin. It had two large, rabbit-like ears with gold rims, a tiny nose and mouth, and light red eyes with pinkish ovals in the center. In the centers of the ovals were white crosses, and thin gold wiring encircles each eye with two small prongs similar to eyelashes. The rabbit-like ears appeared to be two halves of a large disc held together by a hinge at the top. Its upper body was similar to a Poké Ball: it was divided into two light blue portions by a thick gray band. In the front center of the band was a circular depression that was half-blue and half-pink. Above and below the depression, in the light blue portions, was a yellow, diamond-shaped marking. On either side of its upper body was a large, spherical shoulder with thin upper arms that led to large, claw-shaped forearms and slightly pointed hands. Its lower body was a much larger sphere that resembled a ball gown. There was a pair of golden, wavy lines on each side of this sphere, which was divided down the front and back by a gray line. In the back, there was a solid gold ring with a hole in the center at the bottom of that line. The front had a gold ring as well, but it was broken at the top and bottom and had a shield shape in the center. Metal plates similar to the ruffles of a dress adorned the bottom of its lower body, and it had two pointed legs.

"Oh, yes!" the boy said as he trotted up to the mechanical being, "So we finally meet," he noted, taking hold of its left arm, "This way please," he advised, leading it off of the platform, "I am the prince of the Azoth Kingdom, Rali," he introduced with a bow, "It is a pleasure to see you!" he added excitedly. The princess-like creature examined him closely as it blinked, noticing the symbol of gears and a sword in a shield-like outline upon his blue overcoat, beeping all the while. It then walked over to the edge of the wall, seeing the thriving city down below with its expansive design. "Hm?" the royal there uttered in confusion, wondering what it was doing as it closed its eyes, remembering a time when the place seemed just as peaceful.

 **FLASHBACK**

 _Colored in red and gold, the mechanical creature stood beside a bearded old man as they looked over the city, seeing the cogwheels moving about as well._

" _Your heart and soul will be the fortress that will protect the people of our kingdom," the human beside it explained as the wind rushed through his hair, "At least that is my fervent hope…" he noted, turning to smile at the being happily._

 **END FLASHBACK**

Opening its eyes after reminiscing, the princess-like being turned to see the well-dressed boy beside her.

"I am sorry if you had any trouble getting here," he apologized, bowing to it, "Please forgive me," he pleaded, not noticing a figure coming towards them in the distance.

"DAH!" a familiar voice yelled, catching their attentions.

"Huh?" Rali uttered, wondering what it could have been as a trail of steam appeared to be left behind. All of a sudden, the red creature shot up above him with Ash still riding his leg, much to his surprise, including the others. Soaring over the dock, the quadruped descended slowly down to an open area, landing upon it carefully and clamping his arms back together. Meanwhile, Mirajane sneakily flew in behind the airship out of anyone's sight, transforming herself back to normal as she peeked out at her beloved and the creature he was with.

"Who is that?" she questioned in a whisper, narrowing her eyes onto him.

"Mm-hmm," the prince hummed as he nodded amidst the veil of steam they were within, catching her attention as she looked over to see him standing beside the mechanical being, "Is that the Pokémon who wants to take you back, Magearna?" he asked it.

"Magearna?" the raven haired teen questioned before the red being he was holding onto trotted towards them. Two Poké Balls were then tossed up into the air, popping open. The light from them poured onto the ground and came into form, being Glalie and Alakazam as they stood by Gengar.

"Mega… Wave!" the bearded man exclaimed as he waved his fingers over the dark stone on his staff, causing it to glow ominously before a sphere of energy formed in front of it. The take-over wizard gasped at the sight, seeing the three Pokémon standing there appearing to grimace in pain as the same type of sphere appeared over their heads. The one in front of the man's staff unleashed several streaks of light, which consequently veiled the creatures standing before the Omni Force member and the mythical beings.

"Huh?" the former uttered out of confusion, wondering what was about to happen.

" _Hmm…_ " the one beside him muttered as he had seen it before. Despite the pain they were feeling, the three Pokémon all transformed after being completely cloaked within the dark aura, with both the Psi Pokémon and Face Pokémon having the same new appearance as before. The Ghost/Poison type's morphing led to him having a ghostly white appearance with a portion of his body sunk into the ground. A third eye appeared on his forehead, while the spikes on his back were more numerous and pointed. Additionally, spikes appeared on his hands and tail. To top it off, his ears were now considerably longer and projected backward.

"Geng gar!" he exclaimed, smiling evilly upon the completion of his transformation.

"Mega… Evolution?!" Ash realized out of complete shock, noticing the ominous glow in the morphed creatures' eyes.

" _Why you!_ " the red being he was with yelled, charging forward in an instant to try and attack.

"Gengar, Psychic!" the staff-carrying man commanded. Having his eyes glow a bright pink, the Shadow Pokémon hoisted the oncoming enemy up into the air as a pink outline shrouded his form. At the same time, the band around the trainer's waist began glowing again as he was suddenly pulled towards him by the electrical line, banging into his leg. He was consequently thrown off as the creature was spun around, but he luckily grabbed one of the cables that held down the airship, holding onto it with his hands and legs while grimacing.

"Gar!" the ghost-like being shouted delightedly as he had a firm hold on his foe with his telekinetic abilities. However, he managed to unlatch his arms, shooting steam out from them to try and veil himself from view.

"Glalie, Ice Beam!" the broad-shouldered man below ordered. The Ice type quickly responded by readying a bright blue sphere of energy in front of his mouth, which then released zig-zag-like streaks of lights that struck the being, encasing him within ice and freezing him onto the airship as the raven haired teen braced himself. The creature known as Magearna began walking over to them worriedly.

"Zom!" Alakazam exclaimed, having his spoons levitate in front of it face in a threatening manner to stop it.

"Now please don't get worked up…" the bearded man advised as his subordinates looked on to make sure they had settled things with their foe. The princess-like being just stayed put for the moment, but was evidently concerned about the one who was frozen solid. Looking on, Mirajane kept a serious expression upon her face, reaching into her dress and pulling out a chip-like object.

"I better make sure they can find us…" she whispered, pressing the device and making it blink a bright green. Elsewhere within a building, a young woman with bright blonde hair done in locked pigtails and blue, royal and steampunk clothing was walking through the hallways, speaking with someone through a communicator upon her left arm.

"Flamel, any other information?" she asked her as she went a set of moving stairs that shot up step by step.

"Extrapolating from witness reports…" her advisor began as she was looking up data within a monitor room, "what came flying in was a Pokémon," she told her, examining images of the red creature with the ring-shaped arms on his back, "It's called Volcanion," she mentioned.

"Volcanion?" the one she was speaking to replied in confusion, looking at the image that she had seen while still walking up.

" _A mythical Pokémon that is said to live in the mists of Nebel Plateau,_ " the woman communicated to her before she exited the hallway through a painting that rose up to reveal a secret passage way.

"A mythical Pokémon…" she uttered, somewhat amazed by the prospect of it as she found her way into a garage-like area with a transport in front of her.

" _Princess, please be careful,_ " the woman speaking with her advised.

"I will," she responded, getting onto the bike-like contraption as she prepared to launch it. Letting smoke come out from its exhaust, the blonde haired woman launched herself off of a ramp and into the open air. Her machine suddenly morphed into a jetpack-like contraption that blasted air down like a hovercraft to remain airborne. She quickly went on her way towards the kingdom's great walls, not knowing what was conspiring there.

"Volcanion, right?" Rali guessed to the frozen being on the airship as he walked up to him, "Magearna represents the very future of our kingdom," he explained, "I hope you can understand that," he added to him.

"Hey!" Ash yelled, getting his attention as he looked at the seemingly unconscious creature, "It takes nerve to freeze it and ask it to understand!" he pointed out angrily.

"Oh, it's a pleasure to meet you!" the boy below greeted, completely oblivious to his remarks, "I am Rali, the prince of this kingdom," he introduced while bowing politely.

"Prince, huh?" the Pokémon trainer inquired with a blink of his eyes. In the meantime, his crush slowly snuck around the airship, hoping to find an opening to save him.

"So then, who might you be?" the blonde haired boy asked the Omni Force member.

"I'm Ash from Pallet Town," he replied, still hanging onto the cable, "I'm a Pokémon trainer," he mentioned.

"Well then, please let me explain," the well-dressed boy responded as he ran back over to the others, standing by the mechanical creature "You see, Magearna here was built by someone using arcane science long ago," he told the raven haired teen, "Magearna is a Pokémon!" he added excitedly, much to the surprise of both the cap wearer and the take-over wizard.

"A Pokémon?" the former questioned, somewhat in disbelief.

"Precisely!" the prince answered, while inside the ice, the Fire/Water type had begun to stir, opening his eyes, "Magearna was created over five hundred years ago!" he noted, gesturing towards it excitedly, "It is the only one of its kind in the whole wide world!" he added while hopping around happily.

"Huh?!" the Pokémon trainer uttered out of shock.

"Way back then, a great master of arcane science named Nikola lived in our kingdom," Rali explained, "He created many _wonderful_ inventions based on the skills of Pokémon, which brought great riches to our land!" he mentioned, reminiscing over what the great inventor had accomplished in his days, "Magearna was created by Nikola, who presented it to the royal family," he told him, remembering how the being had once been painted a beautiful red and gold with the Azoth symbol upon it, "Then it is said that Magearna lived happily with the princess at that time," he finished, "But sadly, amidst the chaos of war, Magearna's whereabouts were lost…" he pointed out sadly as his hands were clasped together before himself, "But today, we have finally found it!" he finished as he gesticulated towards it, "Mm-hmm!" he hummed happily while nodding. Just then, the sound of ice cracking caught Ash's attention as he turned to see the block shatter from Volcanion's steam, which enveloped the whole area.

"WAH!" he screamed, losing his grip on the cable and plummeting down within the veil. He somehow landed upon the Artificial Pokémon to the surprise of the others, taking a hold of it as his band's electrical line appeared again. It pulled both him and it away in another yelp, banging him into the mythical creature as he grimaced in agony, being squished against him by the man-made life form. "Augh!" he groaned, evidently pained. The steam started to subside however, as the transformed creatures made their up to them.

"Glay lee…" Glalie growled as he was preparing to attack with his comrades.

"I don't think so!" a deep, feminine voice suddenly declared, causing the raven haired teen to perk up as he recognized it. Something slammed into the ground before the Mega Evolutions, blowing them back to their masters as they grimaced in pain. The prince looked forward and gasped at what he saw. The Satan Soul user had taken on another form, having ears that were covered by long, sky blue scales, extending backwards, and gain pointed edges, which bore resemblance to those of fictional elves. She also gained similar scale-like armor on her forearms and hands as well as on her legs. Each forearm also received a fin-like protrusion on its outer side. She also grew a large, sky blue, stocky tail seemingly made of metal plates or scales, getting smaller and smaller near its end. Her clothes also changed, with her attire being replaced by a light blue and dark blue, one-piece suit revealing her arms and legs, which was open on the front and the back, exposing most of her belly, wide cleavage and upper back too. She also donned two angel-like wings that were pointing upwards. "Ash, hurry!" she yelled back to her beloved, making him blink in surprise before realizing what she meant.

"We gotta go!" he told the creatures he was with.

" _Don't have to tell me twice!_ " the Steam Pokémon concurred as he saw their opponents getting back up, " _Lemme' blast 'em away…_ " he muttered, readying his cannon-like arms. Their enemies unleashed their attacks in light blue, zig-zag beams, streams of electricity, and a black and purple ball of energy; all heading towards them. Suddenly though, a bolt of lightning, a throwing star of water, and a powerful sound came down and countered the attacks, causing them to explode in a huge burst of smoke. The Omni Force member looked to his left afterwards and saw his team of Pokémon, with Pikachu riding Talonflame and Greninja upon Noivern as they flew in with Hawlucha.

"Pika pi!" the Electric type cried out to his master as they glided down, with the Wrestling Pokémon landing right in front of their Mega Evolved enemies with Mirajane.

"Haw cha!" he chirped, prepared for battle.

" _Magearna, let's go!_ " Volcanion beckoned, enticing the Steel/Fairy type to climb up onto him. Meanwhile, the princess was nearing the wall with her jetpack, seeing the conflict raging on upon it.

"Rali… and Alva, too…" she muttered as she saw the prince and the bearded man. Glalie then fired off another beam of energy from his mouth, which was consequently blocked by a blast of energy from the take-over wizard, who countered it long enough to have it explode in a large burst of smoke. The blonde haired woman from afar took notice of the raven haired teen upon the mythical creature, also seeing the Artificial Pokémon upon him as he released steam from the nozzles on his arms. "Is that…?!" she began to question, but only got a glimpse as it was veiled by the cloud. The quadruped leapt down and descended slowly from the wall by shooting steam, with both Ash and the mechanical being holding onto him. As the steam remained on the dock, the staff-carrying man gnashed his teeth angrily.

"Hmm…" he muttered out of frustration while still veiled by the cloud. The royal who had witnessed everything from afar was admittedly stunned, having her mouth gape open.

"He's here!" Gingka cried out as he and Erza raced into the city with Dragonair and Phantump, going underneath one of the large cogwheels. Bonnie and Serena followed them, with the former riding upon Luxray as Dedenne stood atop his head. The latter was carrying her crush's backpack, followed by Clemont, who was looking around rather excitedly.

"Could this be?!" he suggested, marveling the sights around him.

"Well, where do we look?" the requip mage asked the Omni Force member as he came to a stop with the rest of them. He was holding his MPG in his right hand, while a holographic map was above it, having a blinking icon to indicate his teammate's position.

"West," he responded to the group, "Let's go!" he beckoned, racing off quickly. As they passed over a bridge, the cheeks of the Antenna Pokémon began to spark, catching their attentions.

"Dennay!" he pointed out, gesturing to his left.

"Ray!" his fellow Electric type concurred, heading off in the advised direction as the others followed quickly.

"Whoa…" the scientist uttered in amazement at the mechanisms he saw. Elevators, lifts, and all kinds of efficient transportation was apparent throughout the city. He ended up jumping into one in his excitement, letting it take him up to the next floor. Meanwhile, the mouse-like creature continued to guide the others as they went up the stairs, heading onward in a quick fashion. The performer then took notice of the fact that the Lumiose gym leader wasn't behind them, enticing her to look around worriedly.

"Clemont!" she called out as he had gotten onto a moving sidewalk, "We've gotta hurry!" she yelled, catching his attention.

"Over here!" he beckoned as she turned to see him there, much to her surprise.

"Clemont?" she uttered in confusion.

"Serena, Bonnie, isn't it incredible?" the scientist inquired while moving along the conveyor belt-like contraption, "This is the Azoth Kingdom!" he pointed out to them excitedly.

"The Azoth Kingdom?" his sister questioned as she and others stopped to listen to him.

"It's an ultra-mechanized city built the great scientist Nikola using arcane science and art!" he explained, looking around at the marvelous mechanisms.

"Mechanized?" the little girl uttered out of confusion while trekking onwards with the others.

"Nikola was a genius!" the blonde haired teen exclaimed from the moving sidewalk, "He's truly one of my all-time idols!" he mentioned, "He used Pokémon's skills as an inspiration for his many inventions!" he added out of awe before getting onto a moving step platform that carried him down to his friends, "Truly a great man!" he finished happily.

"Dennay, day nay!" Dedenne squeaked as his cheeks sparked once more.

"Phan!" Phantump said, floating onward quickly.

"Let's hope we find him in one piece after all that ruckus…" Gingka muttered while continuing to run along. Back at the dock, Alva's subordinates along with him, Rali, and their Pokémon all surveyed the area, trying to spot their target who had seemingly escaped.

"Slur?" Slurpuff uttered upon noticing something, "Slur puh!" he pointed out, gesturing towards a hook latched onto the deck with a black rope attached. Climbing up it was Jessie, who was followed by James and then Meowth as they finally reached it.

"Huh…" she breathed in relief, while her comrades gasped with widened eyes at what they saw, "Huh?" she said out of confusion, opening her eyes to see the people and Pokémon there eyeing them suspiciously, "Peek-a-boo…?" she joked with a nervous laugh as her team had been caught. Elsewhere in the kingdom, Volcanion ran underneath the archway of a bridge, sliding to a halt as Ash fell off of him in a grunt. Magearna disembarked as well, trotting over to its rescuer and cupping his head with its arms while beeping, embracing him warmly.

" _For you, I would walk through fire and water,_ " he stated to her as he lowered his head.

"Ash!" a familiar voice called out, catching their attentions as they saw Mirajane fly down to them with his Pokémon, all landing before him.

"Pika pi!" Pikachu squeaked delightedly, leaping off of Talonflame and landing upon his master's shoulder.

"Pikachu!" he exclaimed, letting him nuzzle his left cheek affectionate before turning back to face the mythical creatures, "So they call you Volcanion, huh?" he inquired to the quadruped, while the take-over wizard transformed herself back to normal in a flash of purple light.

" _Hmph,_ " he scoffed, moving his head away," _And what if they do?_ " he questioned rhetorically, much to their surprise. The Steel/Fairy type chimed in, appearing to lecture its friend on politeness as he seemed to be reluctant to interact with the others.

"Magearna, you really are a one of a kind Pokémon," the raven haired teen noted with a smile, trotting up to it alongside his crush, "You doing okay?" he asked out of light concern, "My name's Ash," he introduced, "and this is my pal, Pikachu," he added, pointing at his partner.

"Pika, pi kachu!" he greeted with a wave.

"And my name's Mirajane," the Satan Soul user chimed in, tilting her head to the side with a small grin on her face. The Artificial Pokémon let out a few beeps as it bowed to them in greeting, extending its right arm to the Omni Force member, much to the surprise of the Fire/Water type.

"It's nice to meet you, too!" he agreed, prepared to shake hands with it until the being between them unlatched his arms used the left one to push him away in a yelp.

" _Don't touch her!_ " he demanded angrily, aiming the nozzles towards him and his comrades as the blue circles and rings of his appendages began to glow. However, only a burst of steam emitted from the openings of his arms as the blue parts turned red with the sound of a ring.

"Huh?" the white haired maiden uttered in confusion afterwards as they ceased bracing themselves, remembering how he had blasted her beloved with torrents of water before.

" _Eh…_ " he grunted out of frustration upon realizing what it meant, trotting over to the river and sticking his arms into it. His nozzles began to suck in the water like a vacuum, slowly filling themselves up as the others watched on.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Ash asked curiously.

" _Storing up,_ " Volcanion replied without batting an eye," _I can't blast anything without water,_ " he mentioned to him, continuing to gather more.

"Whoa…" the human male uttered out of surprise.

"Pika…" Pikachu squeaked, also impressed. His owner then glanced back to see if they had been pursued by anyone, acting quite cautious.

"Don't worry," he reassured to the mythical creatures, "If those guys show up again, we'll chase them away," he promised with a pump of his fist, making the girl beside him giggle in agreement.

" _I don't need help from humans…_ " the Steam Pokémon retorted in annoyance.

"Pi kachu?!" the Electric type yelled, jumping down from his master's shoulder.

" _Stay out of this, you electric rat!_ " the quadruped shouted back, glaring at him.

"Pika?!" he exclaimed out of shock, having never been called something so derogatory, "Pika, pi ka chu!" he screamed in rage, pointing at him accusingly. All of a sudden, the circles and rings upon the Fire/Water type's arms changed back to blue, indicating that he had finished gathering the liquid he needed as he pulled them out.

" _Listen up!_ " he bellowed as he stomped over to the mouse-like being threateningly," _I'll tell you just once…_ " he began in a menacing tone," _I will NEVER trust humans!_ " he stated, looking out at the group of creatures beyond them," _And Pokémon like you posing up to humans,_ " he continued as they glared back at him," _I don't trust THEM either!_ " he roared at them, while they got into ready stances.

"Pika, pika?!" the Mouse Pokémon questioned back, letting his cheeks spark with electricity.

" _What's that, pipsqueak?_ " Volcanion retorted, aiming his cannon-like arms at him," _Wanna fight?!_ " he implied, prepared to attack the one before him along with his teammates.

"Come on…" Ash pleaded, holding his arms out in a placating manner, "Everybody just calm down now," he recommended, not wanting more violence to occur after earlier. Magearna even chimed in with a few beeps, attempting to keep its friend out of trouble as he started to lower his arms.

"Besides, there's no need for us to fight," Mirajane mentioned as she trotted over, squatting down petting Pikachu on the head comfortingly.

"Cha~!" he cooed, having calmed down completely thanks to her, much to the Pokémon trainer's surprise.

"We're all in the same boat, aren't we?" she inquired as she stood back up, going over to the red being with the cannon-like arms, "I think it wouldn't be bad to get along," she added, about to pet the mythical creature herself, making him aim his appendages at her.

" _Don't touch me either!_ " he demanded as his arms buzzed, causing her and the others to gasp in realization.

"Mira!" her beloved cried out, hoping she would get away. Reacting quickly, Greninja leapt out and grabbed her, taking her down to the ground just before a torrent of water was released from the Steam Pokémon's left arm, hitting the wall and splashing down onto the others.

"Pika pi!" the Electric type squeaked worriedly, hoping that his teammate and his master's crush hadn't been hurt. Fortunately, they had avoided the blast as the frog-like creature was lying on top of her, pushing himself up.

"Gren…" he croaked, shaking his head to recompose himself. However, he then took notice of the fact that both of his hands were upon the take-over wizard's breasts, much to her embarrassment as she blushed a bright red. "G-G-Gre!" he stuttered with a crimson face, immediately standing up and bowing to her again and again in an overly apologetic manner while not noticing a certain figure's tail glowing a silvery white.

"Chu, PIKA!" Pikachu screamed angrily as he slammed his tail against his comrade's head, sending him crashing into the wall and making it crack up massively.

"Jah…" he groaned before falling down onto his backside, evidently dizzied as a trickle of blood dripped out from his left nostril. The others were evidently stunned and dumbfounded by what just happened, but Ash disregarded it as he ran over to the white haired maiden, seeing her sit back up.

"Are you all right, Mira?" he asked worriedly, squatting down to her eye level.

"Yeah, I'm good…" she responded, laughing nervously over what conspired as the mythical beings just looked on. Suddenly, a spark of electricity appeared upon the Electric type's tail, catching his attention.

"Pi? Pika?" he uttered out of confusion, turning to see the their friends running down a set of stairs towards, with Gingka and Erza leading the way alongside the Satan Soul user's Pokémon.

"Hoooo!" Dragonair exclaimed delightedly as both she and Phantump went over to their owner, allowing her to embrace them happily.

"We found them!" Bonnie cried out she was still riding Luxray, who jogged in with Dedenne still on his head.

"Ash! Everyone!" Serena greeted upon reaching them with Clemont. They all came to a stop as they noticed the two other beings among them, one of whom was an unfamiliar face to the group.

"Huh?" Clemont said in surprise upon noticing, while the both of them just stared ahead at the new guests. Elsewhere in one of the cities large towers, Alva was sitting at a desk with his subordinates by his side in a study-like room, with Rali and his Slurpuff lounging around on a couch, while he was speaking with Team Rocket.

"I see…" he concurred after hearing their initial explanation, "You say that you know that young trainer?" he guessed.

"Boy, do we ever!" Jessie replied excitedly, rubbing her hands together.

"Quite for a very long time!" James added in the same manner.

"Too long!" his female partner agreed, "You have no idea!" she mentioned while giggling away. The minister grinned as he had his hands in front of his face.

"And you call yourselves Team Rocket?" he inquired to them, "I'll need some more information…" he concluded, getting their attentions.

"More?" they questioned before grinning excitedly, "Sure!" they exclaimed happily, ready to perform any task required. Back underneath the bridge, the Lumiose gym leader began using the hand of his Aipom Arm to grab the band around his friend's torso, tugging at it to try and get it off of him while also having returned Luxray to his Poké Ball, as his comrade had done the same with his group.

"Are you all right, Mira?" Erza asked the take-over wizard after she returned both Dragonair and Phantump to their Poké Balls in beams of red light, "You seem a bit frazzled…" she noted, having seen the sweat that trickled down her head.

"Well… there was a _little_ mishap…" she admitted with a nervous chuckle, while Ash just grimaced, glancing down ashamedly.

"Pika pi…" Pikachu muttered to his master in a reprimanding tone.

"Sorry about that…" he apologized quietly, catching her attention.

"No, it's fine!" she responded in a placating manner, "It was just an accident," she pointed out, much to the confusion of the requip mage and the scientist as they glanced at each other. The former of the two then noticed Gingka approaching, having his hands stuffed into his pockets.

"Where are Serena and Bonnie?" she asked him as he stood beside his Omni Force teammate.

"They went out shopping for some new clothes," he replied, looking down at the Pokémon trainer, "You sure look like you could use them…" he mentioned, enticing him to see the tears and stains of dirt on his jacket and pants.

"Aw, man…" he groaned, "The guild mark got ripped, too," he complained as he held the jacket's right pectoral, while the others smiled at him. In the meantime, Clemont was not only attempting to get the band off of his traveling companion, but was also admiring the sight of the mechanized being with them.

"Just meeting the mythical Pokémon Volcanion would've been amazing," he started to say, catching everyone's attention as he continued to try and get the ring off, "but to _actually_ meet Nikola's greatest creation of all time?!" he noted excitedly, "I'm honored!" he praised, making Magearna beep happily, while Volcanion just scoffed. All of a sudden, a circuit of his device suddenly exploded, shorting it out as it had failed to relieve the raven haired teen of the band around him, much to their surprise as they gasped.

"It's never coming off!" the captive grumbled, sitting back down cross-legged out of frustration as his friend reeled his device back in.

" _You humans are useless…_ " the Fire/Water type muttered, making them perk up.

"Hey, that's not nice!" Ash retorted out of anger.

"Pika, pika!" his partner agreed, while the quadruped just scoffed and turned away.

"Maybe there's another way…" Erza chimed in, catching their attentions as a flash of light appeared in front of her right hand before a sword materialized upon it. She took hold of it, raising it up as both the Pokémon trainer and the scientist shrieked in fright. Fortunately, Gingka took hold of her wrist before she even attempt to swing it down.

"I don't think we need to risk slicing them open by accident," he pointed out in a blunt tone, causing her to blush in embarrassment as her weapon disappeared in another flash.

"I'm sorry," Clemont apologized for earlier, making his friend perk up, "Please forgive me…" he pleaded with a nervous grin. The Artificial Pokémon then trotted over to him with a beep, catching his attention as he saw it extend its left arm out to him. "Huh?" he said in confusion, seeing the tip of it appendage open up and retract, followed by it shooting out a bouquet of pink flowers, "Ah!" he yelped out of surprise as the pink pollen sparkled over him, realizing that the princess-like being was showing him kindness despite his failure, making him smile and blush happily, "Thank you, Magearna!" he exclaimed in gratitude, grasping its arm, "You're a Pokémon treasure!" he complimented, not noticing the Steam Pokémon turning to him angrily.

" _Don't touch her!_ " he demanded, readying his glowing, cannon-like arms as they buzzed loudly. The Steel/Fairy type immediately ducked down and transformed herself into a ball-like state upon seeing his enraged reaction.

"Look out!" the raven haired teen yelled, getting up and rushing over to defend his friend, only to get blasted away by a huge torrent of water, "WAAAHHH!" he screamed before hitting the ground hard, lying on his stomach before one of the drains of the river.

"Ash, you okay?!" the beyblader asked in concern. Before he could even respond properly, Ash felt the electromagnetic pull of his band hoist him up and shoot him in a loud yelp, banging into Volcanion upside down.

"Why me…?" he asked to no one in particular out of his misery, "Guh…" he groaned.

"Pi ka…" Pikachu sighed deeply as the others nervously grinned, trying to think of a solution.

"Hey, we're back!" a familiar voice cried, being Serena as she and Bonnie had returned, with the former holding a pair of shopping bags, "Huh?" she uttered upon seeing the ball-shaped object that resembled the mechanical being, "Uh… Magearna?" she questioned. All of a sudden, the Artificial Pokémon moved the parts of its body around to morph back into its former state, making the others awe it excitedly. "Amazing!" the performer exclaimed.

"Incredible!" Clemont concurred excitedly.

"Kinda like a Poké Ball!" Ash added to his partner upon sitting back up, catching his attention.

"Pi kachu!" he squeaked in agreement.

"Pretty cool," Gingka mentioned, folding his arms over his chest.

"Ash?" the short haired girl chimed in, making him perk up to see her there, "Ta-da!" she exclaimed, holding up the bags she had, "Since your clothes are a mess, how 'bout you try these?" she offered to him. Moments later, the Pokémon trainer was donning a new outfit, wearing a brown hat, a white dress shirt with a teal tie underneath a brown vest, and black pants tucked into brown boots.

"Uh… hmm…" he hummed as he still had the band snug around his torso.

"Wow, you look great!" his older female traveling companion complimented as she held his dirty clothes.

"Definitely handsome," Mirajane added, causing him to blush out of flattery.

"R-Really?" he stuttered in question, rubbing the back of his head, "Pikachu, Magearna, do I?" he asked his teammate and the Steel/Fairy type.

"Pika pika!" the former stated with a nod, while the latter beeped happily as it clapped its pointed hands, making the Steam Pokémon perk up.

" _Stop it, Magearna!_ " he commanded to it, getting its attention," _Don't get involved with these humans,_ " he advised as it trotted over to speak with him face to face, beeping all the while to him," _I refuse…_ " he responded coldly, having to listen to its pleas still," _I said no!_ " he reiterated, evidently annoyed. Realizing that he was being persistent, the mechanized being showed him its arms, retracting the tips, " _Huh?_ " he uttered in confusion before a bouquet of flowers burst out of each of them, followed with the same pink, sparkling pollen as the Artificial Pokémon continued to try and persuade him. The pollen accidentally went up his nostrils however, causing him to stumble as he began breathing somewhat faster. The rest of the group started to realize what was happening, cringing as they all stepped back." _Ah…. CHOO!_ " he sneezed loudly, unleashing a huge amount of steams from the holes on his latched arms, legs, and his nose, making a cloud billow up and catch the attentions of those on the bridge," _Hey, I told you to quit it, didn't I?_ " he scolded to his friend, shaking his head as the others had braced themselves from the blast, looking out to see them," _Okay, fine,_ " he reluctantly agreed," _I'll do my best…_ " he muttered. Magearna waved happily to the group of humans, skipping along the side of the river like a schoolgirl. It suddenly slipped however, beeping frantically before losing its balance as it fell into the water.

"Ah!" Ash gasped, rushing over to her with Clemont, Gingka, and Erza, "Magearna!" he yelled, seeing only its pointed feet moving back and forth, while the rest of its body was submerged. The four of them grunted as they pulled it out with all their might, managing to do so rather quickly.

" _Are you all right?_ " Volcanion asked as the others rushed over to check if the Steel/Fairy was indeed okay. It managed to sit up, looking quite ashamed for acting so silly, while her friend was relieved that it wasn't hurt

"Magearna, you're soaking wet," Serena noted as she and Bonnie helped dry its arms with small towels. The Fairy Tail beauties assisted as well, carefully rubbing the cloths across its body.

"Don't worry," the Lumiose girl chimed in, "We'll get you all dried up!" she promised with a smile.

"De, ne nay!" Dedenne squeaked in agreement, being upon its left shoulder as it beeped happily.

"Well, that's a relief," the scientist pointed out, "Though you gotta admit," he continued, catching the attentions of both the raven haired teen and the beyblader, "Magearna's pretty heavy!" he noted in a carefree manner. Hearing his words caused the mechanical being to shudder before placing its pointed hands over its face.

"De nay?" the Antenna Pokémon questioned, wondering what was wrong.

"She looks… embarrassed," the little girl noted, somewhat confused.

"Because she fell?" her brother guessed, adjusting his glasses before the performer approached him.

"Uh, I don't think Magearna likes being called heavy…" she whispered to him.

"You're kidding," he responded with a nervous chuckle.

" _Of course she doesn't like that…_ " the Fire/Water type grumbled, chiming into the conversation.

"Ah!" the gym leader gasped in realization, "I'm so very sorry!" he apologized, waving his hands in a placating manner, "Please forgive me!" he begged as his sister looked at him blankly.

"Clemont means well," she pointed out to the Artificial Pokémon, tapping it to get its attention, "but he just doesn't understand some things," she mentioned, giggling afterwards.

"It's all right," Erza reassured while placing her hand onto the blonde haired boy's shoulder, "Sometimes we say things without thinking," she noted with a grin.

"Or act without thinking…" Gingka joked, chuckling as she puffed her cheeks out in frustration.

" _We should go,_ " Volcanion advised to the mechanical being, getting its attention," _The sun is setting,_ " he mentioned, ready to head off as he turned around. The Steel/Fairy type immediately beeped in response, going after him and gesturing towards the group of people, while Dedenne jumped back into his caretaker's hands." _No!_ " the Steam Pokémon replied after hearing its words, followed by it angrily hitting his front left leg in defiance," _I said NO!_ " he stated loudly with a stomp of his foot and steam bursting from the holes on his arms, much to the surprise of the others," _I won't bring humans along!_ " he told it, shocked to then see it walk away in a huff, " _Hey, where are you going?_ " he questioned as it trotted onward without another beep, " _Come back here!_ " he beckoned. The princess-like being then suddenly fell over onto its face.

"Not again…" Bonnie muttered as she and the others laughed nervously. The quadruped quickly went over to its aid, accidentally making the bands activate as Ash saw the electrical line appear upon his.

"Uh, ah!" he yelped while getting yanked over in an instant and banged into the Fire/Water type's leg as he was about to pick up Magearna with his arms, "Ugh…" he groaned, lying on his knees. The rest of the group quickly went over to make sure he was all right, as Serena carried the trainer's backpack. They then heard the sounds of chatter from afar, looking to see people eyeing them and the mysterious creatures curiously.

"Uh oh," the beyblader uttered bluntly.

" _We need to get away right now,_ " the larger of the two beings stated, picking up the mechanical one with his arms and placing it upon his back before turning to the humans," _Get moving or I'll leave you behind!_ " he yelled, suddenly unleashing steam from the nozzles of his appendages, veiling them from the sight of the bystanders in a huge cloud. Elsewhere in the kingdom, Rali and Slurpuff were trotting along the halls of the castle, with gears and cogwheels turning and spinning upon the walls beneath the glass panes.

"Rali, wait!" a feminine voice called out, catching his attention as he stopped to see the princess and her advisor on the floor above them.

"Kimia?" he uttered out of surprise, "What is it?" he asked, seeing her continue to walk along the path upstairs.

"I saw you up on the tower wall earlier with Alva and his lackeys," she responded, "What were you up to?" she asked sternly.

"A scientific investigation!" he replied excitedly, continuing his trek, "Many of the amazing machines built by Nikola are operating even now!" he added.

"Oh, is that all?" his sister questioned, getting onto a lift, "Listen to me," she advised, causing him to stop as he saw her slowly descend down to his level, "If you really want to learn," she kept going, "look to the future," she recommended, "Not just the past," she mentioned.

"The future?" her brother retorted, arching an eyebrow, "To do that, you need to learn _about_ the past," he noted cleverly as she got off, trotting towards him.

"Father is worried about you as well," she pointed out, standing before him as the gears on the wall continued to spin.

"Alva was with me," he replied, "so there was no need to worry," he reassured with a simple shrug.

"But that's _why_ he's worried," the princess stated as a retort, much to his chagrin as his expression changed into a frown.

"Now you know that father trusts Alva completely, just like I do!" he shouted, "He thinks a lot more about our kingdom's future than you do!" he added coldly, making her frown as well, "So if you'll please excuse me," he continued politely, bowing to her, "I have to go," he stated, turning around and walking off. Both Kimia and her advisor watched him go, worried for his well-being when concerning the people he was interacting with. Meanwhile, the group traveling alongside the mythical creatures had gone onto a path through a forest, stopping for a moment as both Serena and Bonnie had a little surprise.

"One, two…" the little girl counted down before she and her friend moved aside.

"Ta-da!" they exclaimed together, revealing Magearna with several pink bows upon itself, looking quite cute. The others seemed pretty impressed with their work as the quadruped stomped up to his friend.

"Isn't she cute, Volcanion?" the blonde haired girl inquired. The Artificial Pokémon fixed the bow upon its ear, twirling around before tilting its head to the side cutely.

" _Huh…_ " the Fire/Water type sighed deeply out of annoyance, moving along past them as he ignored the makeover his companion was given, enticing the others to follow him.

"Well, _that_ went over well…" the performer muttered sadly.

"Maybe he's just shy," the young girl suggested, giggling alongside her female friend.

"Could be!" she agreed, "Right, Magearna?" she guessed to the Steel/Fairy type, who merely shrugged with a beep.

"Such an incredible phenomenon…" Erza noted as she glanced back at the princess-like being, "Who would've thought that humans could _actually_ create a Pokémon?" she questioned rhetorically to the others.

"Who knows," Gingka chimed in, catching their attentions, "Maybe in some other world, there's stuff like that happening now," he suggested with a smirk, making the scarlet haired woman do the same back.

" _Other worlds?_ " the Steam Pokémon questioned, turning his head to them.

"It's not important," Ash reassured, holding up his left hand in a placating manner, making him scoff. He then took notice of the mechanical creature appearing to enjoy its time with the two girls behind them.

" _Getting friendly, aren't they?_ " he guessed, making the ones beside him perk up.

"Sure are!" the Pokémon trainer responded with a smile, "Since we're stuck together now, might as well have fun," he recommended as they trekked onward.

"I agree," Clemont concurred as he nodded.

" _Nonsense,_ " Volcanion scoffed in reply," _I just wanna get away from you,_ " he stated, turning his head away," _Nothing good comes from being stuck with humans!_ " he added as they came to a stop.

"You fell out of the sky with these bands, remember?" the raven haired teen pointed out to him, holding onto his ring.

" _Look, humans made these things,_ " he retorted, becoming somewhat annoyed.

"Well, it sure wasn't us," the well-dressed teen responded, closing his hands into fists.

" _All humans are the same!_ " the quadruped reiterated, unhooked his arms and using the right one to blast him away with a huge torrent of water in a yelp. The band on his leg activated, and the electromagnetic line reeled the aspiring Pokémon trainer back in as he banged into it, grunting in agony. Before anything else could happen, his hands grasped the latches of the mythical being's arm before he could put both of them back together. " _Huh?_ " he uttered in surprise as he felt him hang onto him, " _Hey!_ " he yelled, swinging him around as he wrapped his arms and legs around his own appendage, " _What do think you're doing?!_ " he bellowed angrily, " _Get your filthy human hands offa' me!_ " he demanded while stomping around.

"No, I won't!" Ash answered defiantly, holding on with all of his might.

"Ash, be careful!" Mirajane cried out as she and the others watched on worriedly.

" _Cut it out already!_ " the Fire/Water type ordered to him before stopping.

"You first!" he retorted in frustration.

" _I'll blast you off then…_ " the Steam Pokémon concurred, as his whole body started to glow a bright blue. The Omni Force member grimaced in realization, while his friends looked on to see a blue sphere of energy forming upon the creature's arms. Knowing what was about to happen, Magearna immediately ducked into her ball form with her bows falling off to the group's surprise, followed by an explosion of steam in front of them, blowing past them. A moment went by before it finally cleared, revealing a dazed raven haired teen as steam emitted from his form.

"Ah… uh…" he moaned before falling onto the ground upon his back.

" _Peh,_ " Volcanion scoffed, turning his head, " _Nuisance…_ " he muttered. Hearing his words brought a look of anger into the take-over wizard's as she ran over to him, just as the Artificial Pokémon re-emerged from her ball-like state.

"He's only trying to be nice to you!" she screamed at him, causing him to glance over at her.

" _You wanna get blasted too, girlie?_ " he inquired as he aimed his arms at her. The trainer lying on the ground sat up at that moment, gasping to see the position his crush was in.

"Why can't you give Ash a fair chance?" she asked the quadruped, who gnashed his teeth, "He's only trying to show you that he can be trusted," she pointed out, while he just developed an even angrier expression.

" _He's a filthy human, just like you!_ " he shouted, making the aspiring Pokémon master blink out of surprise, having his own face change into an enraged one.

"Well, he's definitely nicer than you're trying to be," the Satan Soul user retorted with her hands at her hips.

" _BE QUIET!_ " the Fire/Water type bellowed, swinging his left arm out at her.

"Mira, watch out!" Erza screamed, but was too late as she was struck, falling onto her rear end in a yelp and grimacing in pain afterwards, much to the shock of the group. Serena and the requip mage immediately rushed over to her, while Ash's eyes trembled out of shock. He then stood up and growled, letting his right fist spark with electricity, catching the attentions of both Pikachu and Gingka as they saw him reel it back.

" _That won't happen if you humans don't-_ " Before the Steam Pokémon could even finish his sentence, the raven haired teen punched his face, making him grimace in agony as he shook his head. He then looked to see the rage building in his eyes as his teeth were clenched together.

"Try that again and I'll give you another!" he declared angrily.

" _Why you…!_ " the mythical creature began to say, readying his arms again as they buzzed.

"That's enough!" the beyblader demanded, getting in between the both of them with the Electric type, holding his hands out to both of them and making them stop, "Ash, cool your jets," he advised, "It's obvious he's not gonna get along with any of us…" he mentioned, making him calm down as he looked over to see his crush being lifted up by the girls, pleading to them that she was just fine.

"Huh…" he sighed deeply, evidently frustrated.

"Pika pi…" the Mouse Pokémon squeaked worriedly. Back in the Azoth Kingdom, the sun started to set as the minister and his subordinates were gathered in the office, looking over a holographic projection of a mountain range with a lake and ring-shaped tree.

"If they're headed somewhere, it's probably… Nebel Plateau…" Alva realized as he glanced over the image.

"The place where Magearna was found in the field of flowers!" Rali added upon remembering.

"Yes," his advisor concurred, "Members of Team Rocket," he began to the trio standing at the door, "please go and investigate," he told them.

"Count on us, sir!" they replied simultaneously with their arms raised.

 **END**

 **So it looks like the gang's traveling with Volcanion until they reach the Nebel Plateau. Of course things don't start our great when Mirajane's getting attacked by Volcanion just for trying to show that they're being kind to him… He's ucky Ash didn't go totally berserk on him…**

 **Just letting you guys know now, this now takes place BEFORE the Kalos League and the Team Flare Arc. Ash also doesn't have his Haki at this time. That takes place later.**

 **Anyways, that's the end of this chapter! See ya next time! But before we go, here's another scenario!**

 **SCENARIO**

 **Nightwing: *throws smoke pellets in front of Ash, Gingka, Pikachu and Greninja***

 **Ash Ketchum: Ah!**

 **Gingka Hagane: Can't... see!**

 **Raiden: *uses Ninja Run to go through the smoke and kicks Gingka away***

 **Gingka Hagane: GUH!**

 **Ash Ketchum: Gingka, you okay?!**

 **Nightwing: *grabs Ash by using the grappling gun and throws him down***

 **Ash Ketchum: AGH!**

 **Pikachu: Pika pi!**

 **Greninja: Gren! *charges towards Nightwing***

 **Spirit Reaper: *looks over seeing the smoke* Well, somebody seems impatient... *sends Mira down with a double kick***

 **Mirajane Strauss: Ergh... I don't think so! *flies back at him**

 **Tommy: Yeah, no kidding... *slashes Erza with the Dragon Dagger***

 **Erza Scarlet: *blocks with sword* Grr...**

 **Nightwing: Sorry, but despite seeing our leader going against two fighters like Natsu and Gajeel, a four on two is something I don't tolerate... well, sometimes. *pulls out both Escrima Sticks***

 **Pikachu: Pika... CHU! *shoots a Thunderbolt towards Nightwing***

 **Raiden: *pulls out the Murasama from its sheath and points it at Gingka* If you want to interfere, try going through us... So let's dance! *activates augment mode as the shield mask covers his face***

 **Gingka Hagane: *hops back on his feet and pulls out his sword* Gladly! *dashes at him***

 **Mirajane Strauss: *punches Spirit***

 **Spirit Reaper: Ergh! *glances at Mira while landing on both feet* Well, that won't be enough... *twists both wrists as two mothers appear***

 **Mirajane Strauss: Huh?**

 **Spirit Reaper: Tommy himself gave his Zeo Morphers to me during our last fight... And I'd like for you see it yourself! It's Morphin Time! *smirks as he slams both morphers together* ZEO RANGER FIVE: RED! *morphs into the Red Zeo Ranger***

 **Mirajane Strauss: *shocked* What in the world...?**

 **Erza Scarlet: He learned how to do _that_?!**

 **Tommy: Heh. I got two more ranger powers. But for now... *throws a green fireball at Erza***

 **Erza Scarlet: *notices and jumps away quickly***

 **Tommy: SWORD OF DARKNESS! *summons the sword and spins it before glancing at her***

 **Erza Scarlet: Interesting... *requips into Heaven's Wheel armor***

 **Greninja: Neen, jah! *fires Water Shuriken successively***

 **Nightwing: *dodges the attack and then jumps before throwing the wing-dings at them***

 **Greninja: *jumps away skillfully***

 **Ash Ketchum: Nice one, Greninja! *runs forward, sparking his electrical cloak* Pikachu, Electro Ball!**

 **Pikachu: Pika! *forms Electro Ball on his tail* Chu... PIKA! *fires it***

 **Nightwing: *avoids contact from the electro ball and hits Ash with one of the sticks and kicks him away* Nice try, but you can do better than that..**

 **Gingka Hagane: Tornado Slash! *attempts to cut Raiden***

 **Raiden: *blocks the attack with Blade Mode and slashes Gingka at a blinding speed and kicks him away***

 **Gingka Hagane: GAH! *stumbles back* In that case... *turns around and tries to slice him* Tornado Uppercut!**

 **Raiden: *uses Zandatsu and slashes at him at a much faster rate***

 **Gingka Hagane: AAAAHH!**

 **Erza Scarlet: *slashes at Tommy***

 **Tommy: Agh! *rolls but goes back up clashing swords with Erza* How much strength do you even have to keep this up? I put in much effort to bypass almost some of your stronger armor... bruises aside of course...**

 **Erza Scarlet: We'll see. Heaven's Wheel... *dashes past him in an instant as several swords appear behind her* Scattered Petals! *swords rain down on Tommy***

 **Tommy: GAH! *falls and lands hard, demorphing to civilian form* I cannot keep on underestimating you any further. *stands up on his feet* It's time that you check out my full potential. *puts a bracelet with a black gem on his wrist***

 **Erza Scarlet: What's that?**

 **Tommy: It's my dino gem. The power of invisibility and my black ranger form. Here I go! *transforms the bracelet into a morpher* Dino Thunder! Power Up! puts the key in the morpher and morphs into the Black Dino Ranger* Brachio Power!**

 **Erza Scarlet: Oh dear...**

 **Spirit Reaper: Ergh! *keeps his balance while standing from the attacks* ZEO POWER SWORD! *summons sword and creates a star formation while slashing at Mira***

 **Mirajane Strauss: AAHH! *recovers quickly and fires plethora of dark beams at him***

 **Spirit Reaper: *dodges from the attacks but takes the last hit and jumps back up* That last one hurt, but this one will hurt you even more! *slashes her with both sword and scythe creation a circle before releasing blue flames at her***

 **Mirajane Strauss: Agh! *falls to the ground, groaning in pain***

 **Greninja: *throws Water Shuriken***

 **Pikachu: *fires Thunderbolt***

 **Nightwing: Agh! *goes on one knee from the combined electricity and water attacks***

 **Ash Ketchum: Way to go, guys!**

 **Nightwing: *falls on the ground but goes back up slowly* Wow, the three of you are stronger than I thought...**

 **Ash Ketchum: Heh!**

 **Nightwing: But take this! *throws the wing-dings at them having them exploded***

 **Ash Ketchum: WAH! *gets blown back with his teammates***

 **Gingka Hagane: HURRICANE SLASH! *slices past Raiden with his blade encased in a vortex of wind***

 **Raiden: Ergh! *lands on one hand slowing himself from the wind before attacking Gingka with the high frequency blade and hits him with a flurry of sword kicks and them slashes him away***

 **Gingka Hagane: Gah... *appears to fall over until he stands up and tries to punch Raiden***

 **Raiden: *dodges and hits him with an electronic punch***

 **Gingka Hagane: *falls over* Ugh..**

 **Team Spirit: *stands next to each other before glancing at the Omni Force***

 **Spirit Reaper: *pants* Well things became much better... and difficult at the same time... Power Down! *demorphs back to normal before putting the bracelets back on***

 **Tommy: I can tell that I'm giving Erza a hard time with this form... *goes on one knee and grips on his arm* but I'm pretty much beat up myself since I was in my Green Ranger form...**

 **Nightwing: Ash and his** **Pokémon** **aren't playing games... But I can show them how good I am without any powers...**

 **Raiden: Hagane wasn't even trying, but his efforts barely did anything to get me... I'll try to swing harder to make him stay down...**

 **Mirajane Strauss: *gets up and gathers with her friends* It'll take a lot more than that to keep us down.**

 **Spirit Reaper: I do agree with you Mira, but don't think that you got us down for the count. *opens his box and puts on the Loyalty and Laughter Rings* Double Harmony Mode! Loyalty and Laughter! *activates both modes***

 **Ash Ketchum: Here he comes!**

 **Spirit Reaper: Alright Team Spirit, no holding back! Let's Rock It!**

 **Ash Ketchum: Sounds good to me! Greninja, let's do this together!**

 **Greninja: Gren! Neen... JAAAAAHHH! *transforms into Ash-Greninja***

 **END SCENARIO**

 **The next chapter might not be coming out for a while, so please be patient. See ya later!**

 **QUOTE**

 _ **I'll be cheering for you, even if I can't see you!**_

 **Mirajane Strauss**

 **To Ash before his opening match in "A League of His Own!"**


	4. PART II

**Hey everyone! Hope I didn't keep you all waiting too long! Now while everything's coming together in terms of all my stories, I still need to introduce a few more so they can be set up for future use, being "Going Wild", "Evolution", and "The Five". But of course, there are stories like this that should get updated after so long, so that's what I'm doing first.**

 **Last time we were with our heroes, Mirajane got hurt by Volcanion, so Ash hurt him back. Now the gang's heading for Nebel Plateau! Can they get there without any more trouble?!**

 **VOLCANION & THE MECHANICAL MARVEL**

Night fell as the group arrived outside of cavern, having a fire set up as they sat around it. The sparks from the burning flames were practically all that could be heard with everyone remaining silent. No one had said a word since Mirajane was attacked by Volcanion, thus leading to some tension between them. Ash clutched the sleeves of his dirtied dress tightly, still angered by what the mythical creature had done to the person he loved. Magearna was balancing Squishy and Dedenne upon its arms in a playful manner in the meantime, while its friend was sleeping behind them.

"Heh, heh…" Clemont chuckled in a somewhat ominous sounding tone, approaching the group with a grayish-colored object in his hands, "It's all finished!" he declared, catching their attentions, while the Steam Pokémon was somewhat asleep.

"What is?" the raven haired teen asked curiously.

"Have a look for yourselves!" the scientist responded eagerly, "The future is now thanks to science!" he exclaimed, unfolding his new invention to reveal that it was a set of armor, much to everyone's surprise as they stared at it. The Fire/Water type batted an eye at the contraption before falling back asleep in boredom. Meanwhile, the Pokémon trainer had put it on, having a red circle at the chest, while the ring was still around his torso. "I made this protective suit inspired by moves like Iron Defense and Protect," his friend explained after helping get it completely on, "It's called Mister Iron Defense!" he declared just as a red light blinked on the invention, causing the mask to come down and shield its wearer's face.

"Whoa-ho!" he yelped excitedly, laughing before stepping forward and stretching his arms and legs in his new outfit.

"You're protected from any kind of attack!" the blonde haired boy mentioned confidently with his arms folded behind his back.

"Incredible…" Erza complimented as her eyes sparkled out of disbelief, admiring the simplicity yet efficiency of the armor. Her barmaid friend and the beyblader with her grinned in agreement, while the quadruped just yawned. From afar, a pair of eyes viewed them through a set of binoculars, being James' as he blinked out of confusion.

"Huh?" he uttered, putting the viewing device down for a moment, "What do I see…?" he questioned out of confusion as he was with his comrades.

"Looks like a campfire," Jessie answered while gesturing towards the group.

"Maybe they're just settin' up camp here tonight," Meowth suggested.

"We should tell Alva," the male human of the group recommended to his teammates as they watched Bonnie, Pikachu, and Magearna join Ash in stretching.

"Wait!" his female partner yelped, sticking her left hand out, "Our real boss is the prince," she pointed out to them, "Once we can get our hands on what he wants, we'll be rich," she noted.

"Brilliant!" the light purple haired man responded with a pump of his fists, "And that's rich!" he added jokingly.

"Let's make some dough…" the Scratch Cat Pokémon advised, smirking deviously alongside his comrades as they chuckled.

"Huh?" Gingka uttered from the campground, turning his head as he believed his ears had caught the sound of quiet laughter from afar, "Weird…" he said, narrowing his eyes out of suspicion.

"All right everyone," Serena began, getting their attentions, "we should rest up in that cave for tonight," she recommended, gesticulating towards the opening in the earth.

"Good call!" the little girl beside her agreed, happily heading towards it with the others. The face mask of the Pokémon trainer's suit came up, allowing him to glance over and see the light smile upon his crush's face, making him grin.

 **PART II**

Everyone fell fast asleep within the cavern as the fire had gone out, with some of them snoring. The raven haired teen had a somewhat uncomfortable expression on his face, squirming around slightly. All of a sudden, his eyes jolted open as he found himself within a field of wheat stalks, wearing his regular clothes as the wind rushed by, blowing through his hair.

"Wh-Where am I?" he stuttered in question, glancing around. He then took notice of the fact that the band upon his waist was gone, making him laugh excitedly. "Hey guys!" he cried out, standing up with a grin on his face, "I don't know how, but my band's off!" he yelled, still not receiving a response from anyone, "Hello?" he uttered out of confusion, wondering why no one could be seen by him. Suddenly, his eyes caught the sight of a familiar figure, being Mirajane as she stood atop a hill as another breeze blew in. "Mira!" her beloved exclaimed, running up to her quickly, "My band's finally off!" he pointed out, gesturing towards his torso, "Guess we should tell the others and-" He stopped talking at the moment he saw something quite odd. As her dress swayed within the wind, he could see that her left thigh was barren of its guild mark, making him blink in surprise. "Mira…" he started to say nervously, "what happened to your Fairy Tail mark?" he asked. She slowly turned her head to face him, astonishing him a little as he saw the dead look in her eyes, which were filled with tears.

"Fairy Tail?" she responded in an unaware tone, shocking him as he shivered, "It's… dead…" she said coldly.

"No…" the one before her uttered in disbelief, looking down at his jacket. He gasped to see that the emblem there was gone as well, but not the rip that had cut it. Without warning, the ground started to collapse beneath him, sending him down into a dark abyss in a loud holler. He awoke with a start back in the cavern, breathing heavily as he sat up, looking around. In front of him was Volcanion, whom his crush was sleeping beside. Next to her was Gingka and Erza, followed by Magearna, who snoozed with Bonnie, Clemont, Serena, Dedenne, and Squishy. He then saw Pikachu sleeping at his left leg, having his tail curled up. After breathing a sigh of relief, Ash looked over at the beyblader and the requip mage, trying to see their guild marks. Due to how dark the cave was, he couldn't tell if the insignias were on their arms, even as he squinted. It would be too much trouble for him to remove his protective suit to check for his own mark, so he glanced over at the take-over wizard, blushing as he realized that her dress was covering her thigh. He gulped nervously as he stuck his arm out, grasping the front flap with his fingers carefully and lifting it up just slightly. The moonlight revealed a part of her white mark, much to his relief as he let go of the article of clothing, sitting back down.

"What are you doing?" a familiar voice asked, making him grimace in fright as he spotted his Omni Force teammate having woken up, causing him to blush madly.

"It's not what you think! I swear!" he pleaded in a whisper, waving his hands around frantically. His best friend just let out a chuckle though, much to his surprise.

"Relax, dude," he advised, "I know you're not the kinda guy who'd do that stuff on purpose," he noted reassuringly, causing him to sigh out of relief, "Or at least… not be a pervert…" he mentioned as he cringed slightly.

"I… had a nightmare," he confessed after recomposing himself while looking down ashamedly, "Mira and I lost our guild marks and… she looked sad…" he told him, folding his arms over his head as he tucked his legs in, "I never wanna see her cry like that at all," he stated as he clutched his armor tightly. The shaggy haired teen let out a quick breath of air after hearing his words.

"You really care about her and the guild, don't you?" he guessed, surprising him as he perked up.

"Yeah…" he replied, lifting his head up and looking at the cavern's ceiling, "I wonder how the guild's doing after all this time…" he pointed out, smiling a little.

"Probably still getting it fixed," the sword carrier responded, managing to chuckle a little with his comrade, "Hey, Ash?" he chimed in, catching his attention, "Even if the guild's not there, we're still family," he said, making him widen his eyes before grinning, nodding back at him in understanding while not noticing that the Fire/Water type had woken up. Just then, Gingka felt something fall onto his right shoulder, turning to see the scarlet haired woman resting her head against him. He grinned with another laugh, letting her sleep. All of a sudden, the Mouse Pokémon's right ear shot up, causing his trainer to glance down at him in surprise as he awoke.

"Pika?" he squeaked in confusion, glancing towards the cave's entrance.

"What's up, buddy?" his master questioned as he arched an eyebrow.

" _You sensed it, too?_ " Volcanion inquired to the Electric type, seeing race off outside before stomping after him.

"Uh, hey, wait!" the raven haired teen cried out quietly as the band around him glowed purple again, with the electrical line appearing and dragging him away in a yelp.

"Huh?" a fatigued Mirajane uttered as she awoke along with Magearna, who popped out of its ball-like state upon wondering what was going on. Pikachu arrived outside, only to be ambushed by a barrage of greenish-yellow, seed-like projectiles that rained down towards him.

"Pika!" he yelped, hopping out of the way and sparking with electricity all over his body, "Pi… ka, CHU!" he exclaimed upon launching a bolt of lightning at the face of the mountain, making a chunk of it explode. Both the Steam Pokémon and Ash came outside and gasped as they saw the smoke, while the others inside had all woken up, with the princess-like being standing up and heading towards the cave's entrance.

"Magearna!" Bonnie cried out as she and the rest of the group went after the Artificial Pokémon. Once it arrived outside, it beeped in concern, appearing to ask what had happened as the smoke was clearing.

"Yoo-hoo!" a familiar voice sang as everyone was out of the cavern, looking up to see Team Rocket atop it with a Pinsir and Heracross standing alongside them.

"From now on, Magearna's our guest!" Jessie declared with her hands at her hips.

"Team Rocket!" the armored teen shouted in realization, while Gingka narrowed his eyes.

"What are you guys doing here?" Serena asked.

"Huh?" Clemont uttered out of confusion upon noticing the two creatures among them, having to adjust his glasses, "Heracross and Pinsir?" he questioned, completely perplexed by seeing them.

"Hey, where are your normal Pokémon?" his sister asked as both of the Fairy Tail beauties got into ready positions.

"We're not your normal Team Rocket!" Meowth retorted as a reply, "Check this out!" he said, gesturing towards his human partners.

"Mega Wave Team Rocket!" they bellowed together, crossing their left arms to reveal wristbands that included the dark stones with curved shapes. The take-over wizard and her beloved gasped upon recognizing their appearance.

"What?!" the former exclaimed out of shock.

"Key Stones?!" the scientist inquired, moving to get a better look at the devices.

"We've joined forces with the good prince Rali!" the female of the two human crooks stated.

"No way…" Ash uttered in disbelief, while the group looked on at the duo who readied their arms.

"See?" they questioned rhetorically, waving their fingers over the stones, "We're Mega Wave… Team Rocket!" they declared together as the stones glowed, followed by the sphere-shaped hologram appearing above them, shooting out streaks of pinkish purple light. The same aura appeared over the two Bug types, who were apparently grimacing in pain, much to the shock of the others.

"What on earth…?" Erza started to question, while the beyblader beside her gritted his teeth.

"Pika?!" Pikachu squeaked in astonishment.

"Mega Wave!" the duo above shouted again, as the streaks of luminosity suddenly began swirling around the two creatures in a darkening aura, causing everyone to gasp in disbelief before it enveloped them completely. It then dissipated, revealing the two in a transformed state with glowing purple eyes. Pinsir gained a large pair of clear wings with an area of orange venation. Additionally, a set of wing coverings appeared. On each wing cover was a pair of large, thin, orange blades. His arms become longer and more segmented, with triangular extensions on His lower arms. The pincers on his head were now longer with larger spikes, and his eyes are now yellow, though couldn't be seen due to the purple glow.

Heracross was bulkier than his previous form. Thin orange markings now rimmed his head, hands, and shoulders. Additionally, there was a half-circle, orange marking over his eyes. He now had a long, pointed nose that curved slightly upward, while his back now lacks wings and was completely yellow. The horn on his head had grown into a large, simple spike with two smaller spikes on the front. The antennae had lengthened as well, and now have ovoid tips. To top it off, his forearms had thickened and lost their spines. They stared down at their foes, growling angrily.

"Mega Evolution?!" Bonnie exclaimed out of disbelief.

"But how?!" her brother questioned with clenched fists, "To Mega Evolve, there must be a close bond between trainer and Pokémon!" he noted in rage.

"It's thanks to what Alva calls… uh…" Jessie tried to say, but forgot as she arched an eyebrow, placing her right index finger against her head, "What was it?" she questioned, causing James to inwardly sigh as an expression of annoyance crossed his face.

"Neo arcane science…" he replied, gesturing towards his bracelet, "With this technology," he continued in an ominous tone, "we can use Mega Evolution and don't need any stinking bonds or Mega Stones!" he exclaimed delightedly.

"I get it…" Ash uttered out of realization, remembering the instance he saw the same thing on the wall dock, "So that's how Gengar and the others…" he noted upon understanding.

"What about how the _Pokémon_ feel?!" Serena cried out angrily, "That's not Mega Evolution!" she mentioned.

"Arcane science was developed to make people and Pokémon happy!" Clemont shouted, pointing at them accusingly, "You're defaming the memory of Nikola!" he stated with rage in in voice.

"Hey!" Meowth yelled back, "We call it 'neo' because the technology passes good guy science!" he explained, chuckling evilly. His words brought out a snarl from Gingka, who reached down to his belt.

"If you wanna fight a _real_ Mega Evolution," he began, not noticing a figure trotting towards him, "then you've-" He stopped his remark upon seeing an armored hand come out before him, being Erza's as she was grabbing something from her own belt.

"Gingka, don't dirty your hands with these pathetic fiends," she advised, much to the trio's surprise as they looked down at her, "Even if they have this new power," she continued, "I doubt they have the capability of using it to their advantage…" she remarked with a smirk, causing them to gasp.

"Why you little redheaded witch!" the female of the group shouted angrily, seeing her pull out a Poké Ball and enlarge it by pressing its center button.

"We'll show you!" her male partner declared with clenched fists.

"Now Heracross!" Jessie beckoned.

"Pinsir, too!" James yelled.

"Turn 'em into goo!" the Scratch Cat Pokémon ordered, enticing the two, Mega Evolved Bug types to ready their attacks, with the half-Flying type ready a dark sphere of energy, while the half-Fighting type has green electricity move between his nose and horn. They then launched their moves, with the former's being a beam of light, and the latter shooting greenish yellow projectiles down at their foes.

"Bisharp, go!" the requip mage called out, backhanding the spherical container. It popped open, and the light that poured out from it came into form upon the ground, dissipating to reveal the Sharp Blade Pokémon.

"Shar!" he exclaimed, crossing his arms over his face as he immediately took both attacks in an explosion of smoke, sliding back only slightly, "Bi," he scoffed, readying the blades on his arms upon bringing them out. In the meantime, Volcanion jumped out in front of Magearna and the others.

" _You!_ " he shouted to the scientist and the others," _Take Magearna away from here!_ " he advised quickly," _I hate relying on humans, but I have no choice,_ " he stated," _Go!_ " he cried out.

"Everyone, get going!" the Pokémon trainer added to them.

"We'll hold them back!" the scarlet haired female declared as a sword appeared in her right hand, standing beside the Steel/Dark type.

"All right!" Mirajane agreed with a nod, as Gingka did the same.

"Let's go, Magearna!" Bonnie beckoned, taking the Artificial Pokémon's left arm and running off with it and the others.

"Leave it to us!" Clemont reassured as they left in a hurry, while Team Rocket watched on, seeing that the foes that remained included Ash, Erza, Pikachu, Bisharp, and the Steam Pokémon.

"Let 'er rip!" they called out to their morphed creatures, who immediately jumped down after their enemies.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" the raven haired teen commanded.

"Pika… CHU!" the Electric type screeched, enveloping himself with energy before shooting out another bolt of lightning. Both the Stag Beetle and Single Horn Pokémon narrowly avoided the attack as it struck the mountain, as the former flew up into the air with his new wings.

"Bisharp, Iron Head!" the S-class wizard cried out. Leaping up after the morphed Bug/Flying type, the Sharp Blade Pokémon had a whitish aura appear over his form, making him appear black and white. However, his foe dodged the attempted strike, kicking him away. He managed to land down on his feet though, turning to see his master becoming the creature's target.

"Erza, watch out!" the armored teen beside her exclaimed as she swung her weapon at the oncoming enemy. Without warning though, his pincers grasped the blade and shattered it into pieces, much to their shock.

"What power…" she uttered in realization, tossing the broken armament aside and getting back into a ready stance. Meanwhile, Heracross began charging towards the Fire/Water type, who unlatched his arms, while he had his horn glow a light green as it grew. He rammed into his adversary, who grunted as he could feel himself struggling to hold him back.

"Get 'em, Volcanion!" the Omni Force member cried out.

" _I don't need a cheerleader!_ " the quadruped retorted, suddenly lifting the transformed Bug/Fighting type off of the ground and hurling him up into the air. As he fell onto the ground in a heap, Pinsir zoomed down, about to ram right into the unaware Volcanion.

"Night Slash!" the requip mage commanded.

"Iron Tail!" the Pokémon trainer ordered. The Steel/Dark type had the blades on his arms glow a bright purple, while the Mouse Pokémon's tail shined in a silvery white light. They both leapt up and struck the morphed Bug/Flying type aside, sending him careening through the air.

"Heh!" the quadruped laughed, smirking a little before throwing his arms and unleashing large torrents of water at his foes, striking them down before they could get back on their feet.

"Yes!" Ash exclaimed as the others smiled at their successful attack. Unfortunately, their transformed opponents stood back up, growling angrily. The raven haired teen looked back and forth at the two of them while wondering how his comrades were doing. In the meantime, Erza summoned forth a long spear, spinning it around before grasping it in her right hand.

"Let's go!" she cried out, yelling as she charged towards Heracross. Meanwhile, Clemont, Bonnie, and Serena continued to run with Magearna through the forest, as the latter of the humans held the princess-like being's left arm. All of a sudden, she stepped onto a stretch of moss that collapsed underneath her.

"WAH!" she screamed as she fell into the small trench with the Artificial Pokémon, the Lumiose girl, and the scientist; the latter of whom flailed his arms around to try and keep his balance, but failed as he too dropped down. The trio of their enemies then arrived, smiling at their work.

"Success!" Jessie exclaimed delightedly, while the group below glared back at them.

"It worked like a charm!" James added as they were about to grab their target.

"And it looks like the Megas kept Volcanion away!" Meowth mentioned, raising his arms.

"Forgetting someone?" a familiar voice chimed in, causing them to perk up in confusion. All of a sudden, a light poured down out of the sky in front of them, much to their surprise as it came into form, dissipating to reveal a Scizor.

"Zor!" he shouted while snapping his pincers, frightening the group before him as they stepped back slightly. Another luminosity rained down in front of them, forming into a Dragonair.

"Huurrooooh!" she bellowed, prepared to attack. The ones within the ditch stood up and smiled upon realizing what the creatures were doing there. Coming out from the shadows of the trees were Gingka and Mirajane, who made the trio of villains grimace in realization.

"Fine!" the long haired woman responded angrily, pulling out a Poké Ball from her belt, as her male partner did the same.

"We don't need Mega Evolution to take down the two of you!" he declared, while they just kept serious countenances on their faces.

"Yeah…" the Scratch Cat Pokémon concurred, extending his claws out with a sinister grin. Suddenly though, several rainbow-colored, sharp, crescent-shaped leaves rained down, causing the group of enemies to yelp as they ran back to avoid them, letting them strike the ground.

"Huh?" the beyblader uttered out of surprise, turning around with the others to see an alternate colored Gardevoir standing there, wearing a necklace with a pendant that had a bright stone that included a familiar curved shape.

"Gar da vuar!" she called out, followed by a large red aircraft with bright headlights coming down behind her.

"The nerve!" Jessie exclaimed out of frustration, having to shield her eyes. It turned out to be Kimia upon the vessel, who had tapped the Key Stone embedded into the metal component upon her left glove.

"Gardevoir, Mega Evolve!" she bellowed as streaks of bright yellow light emerged from her solid. Blue luminosities came out of her partner's Gardevoirite, connecting with those of her trainer's as they then shined a bright white. Everyone watched on in amazement at the scene, including the trio of villains.

"GAAARRRR!" the Psychic/Fairy type yelled as her body began to morph within a multicolored aura. Most of her body turned black, while her hair and upper body remained sky blue, and her face stayed white. Her gown became longer and wider, resembling a bridal gown, while her forearms were slightly thicker with a pointed extension above each elbow. In addition, her facial spikes were larger and now curled upwards. But in contrast to her previous form, her hair was now shorter and more tightly curled. There were now two horns in the center of its chest, extending to either side as her transformation was completed, revealing her elegant appearance. "Gar de vor!" she exclaimed, prepared to attack.

"Now there's a Mega Gardevoir in our faces!" Meowth noted, cringing out of fright with his teammates.

"Use Dazzling Gleam!" the princess commanded with a swing of her right arm. The Mega Evolved Embrace Pokémon shrouded herself in a rainbow colored shine, which brightened as the group before her grimaced in realization.

"AAHH!" they screamed simultaneously with their hands raised.

"Duck!" Mirajane cried out, enticing everyone to take cover as the group in the pit put their heads down, while she, Gingka, Scizor, and Dragonair ran off to the side. A chain of explosions then occurred, sending the three crooks right up into the air.

"We're blasting off again!" they shrieked together, disappearing into the night sky like shooting stars. As the smoke cleared, everyone got themselves back on their feet, looking to see Kimia smiling at them.

"Who are you?" the beyblader asked, arching an eyebrow. Back at the cavern, Pinsir was unleashing a barrage of the greenish projectiles towards everyone from above, enticing them to brace themselves. The face mask of Ash's armor came down automatically just before the attack struck him, while Pikachu and the others went off to the side to dodge it.

"Ash!" Erza cried out worriedly as the dust settled. Fortunately, she saw that he was unharmed from the attack as he looked himself over.

"Wow, nothing!" he noted while glancing at his hands. All of a sudden though, he saw both of their Mega Evolved opponents charging towards them from opposite directions, grimacing in realization. "Pikachu!" he called out, enticing his partner to jump up onto his shoulder before they climbed upon the Steam Pokémon, "Let 'em have it, Volcanion!" he told him while covering the Electric type.

" _Don't blame me for the results,_ " he retorted back.

"Don't worry," the raven haired teen reassured as his face mask came back down, "Erza!" he yelled, catching the attention of the requip user.

"Got it!" she responded immediately, enveloping herself within a golden light as Bisharp went to her side. A bright blue light began shrouding the Fire/Water type as he growled, letting a blue sphere of energy appear between the openings of his arms, growing in size.

" _Er… AAAAHHH!_ " he roared, making the energy explode into a massive burst of steam before his enemies could attack, blowing them back instantly. Several trees were also uprooted by the force of the blast, shrouded by dust and mist moments later. The veil then cleared, revealing that the armored Pokémon trainer and his comrade were fine, as they both looked to see what had happened.

"Pika, pika!" the latter squeaked, amazed at how they weren't even scratched from the explosion.

"Science is so amazing…" his master noted, glancing down at the protective suit.

"Pika…!" the Mouse Pokémon suddenly gasped, catching his attention as he looked out and widened his eyes to see that they were within the depths of a large crater created from the blast. He and his partner hopped off of the quadruped, surveying the area.

"So this is your real power…" he realized, looking around.

" _Heh,_ " Volcanion chuckled in response, making them perk up," _If I showed you my real power, it wouldn't be just this,_ " he pointed out," _I've leveled a whole mountain,_ " he mentioned somewhat modestly.

"Awesome!" Ash responded, but suddenly gasped as he remembered something, "Erza! Bisharp!" he cried out, hoping that they too managed to withstand the blast.

"We're all right," the scarlet haired woman's voice reassured, causing them to glance over and see her donning a full-body, navy blue and white armored suit. Its breastplate was a navy blue, with a lighter blue, belt-like contraption around the waist, and three spikes lining the top that gave way to a white neck brace. The shoulder pieces were sectioned with a large spike dividing each section, as the middle was the largest of the three. Attached to her elbows were two large white shields, and on the back of each hand gauntlet was a blue jewel. At the bottom of her chest plate was a two-layer, white, metallic shirt with small spikes hanging at the end of each layer. Her legs were covered in sectioned armor that matched the rest of her outfit with blue curving spikes attached below the knee of the greaves. To top off the attire was a large, spiked headdress atop her head. Seeing her outfit caused her friend to smile with a small laugh.

"Your Adamantine armor…" he recalled, knowing how defensive it was as he saw that the Sharp Blade Pokémon had been protected as well.

" _Well, this is a first…_ " the Fire/Water type chimed in, catching their attentions, " _Never thought I'd see TWO humans handle my blasts…_ " he muttered as he looked away.

"You'd be surprised at what I've handled," the one known as Titania retorted, placing her hands at her hips. A golden luminosity shrouded her form afterwards, transforming her outfit back into her Heart Kreuz attire, much to the surprise of the quadruped as he blinked. Just then, Pikachu's ears perked up.

"Pika?" he uttered in confusion, enticing them to all look over and see the red hovercraft floating down towards them, with its headlights shining down.

"Hey, Ash!" Serena cried out, holding the raven haired teen's backpack in her hands, being with Clemont, Bonnie, Gingka, Mirajane, and Magearna atop the vessel's carrier, with the princess driving it.

"What happened?" the scientist asked curiously upon seeing the crater, as the pilot of the ship gasped.

"Hey guys!" the Pokémon trainer greeted, glad to see that they were okay while letting his partner climb up onto his shoulder.

" _Now I've gotta deal with another human…_ " Volcanion muttered in realization, looking off to the side out of annoyance. Moments later, the group all gathered around each other, while the aircraft was parked just beside the crater.

"Check this out," the beyblader said, holding a pair of Poké Balls in his hands, surprising some of the others as they blinked, "We found these after taking care of Team Rocket," he continued, glancing at them himself, "but I don't think they're theirs…" he mentioned while narrowing his eyes onto them.

"Hold on a sec…" Erza chimed in, taking the spherical container in his right extremity and walking off with it for a moment, heading out of the crater. Beside a few fallen trees was the Pinsir she and the others had fought, who was trying to push himself off of the ground as he had transformed back to normal. Multiple scrapes and bruises were across his body from the conflict, causing him to fall over again. He looked to see the requip user approach, kneeling down beside him.

"Keh…" he groaned out of agony, looking somewhat sorry.

"You definitely didn't deserve to Mega Evolve," the person near him noted quietly, "At least not in that fashion…" she added, standing up and aiming the containment at him, "Come," she beckoned, making him perk up, "You'll be safe with us," she promised with an inviting smile. The Stag Beetle Pokémon's eyes trembled at her kindness as he nodded, allowing her to return him to the device in a beam of red light.

"We're lucky that they didn't have any more Mega Evolutions…" Bonnie pointed out back within the crater, shivering at the thought of multiple ones coming after them.

" _Keh,_ " Volcanion scoffed, catching their attentions, " _I'd just blast them away again,_ " he stated proudly as he blew steam out of his nostrils.

"That might not be necessary," the S-class wizard's voice retorted, causing him to perk and look over to see her coming.

"What do you mean?" Mirajane asked, seeing her show them the Poké Ball that she had taken.

"That Pinsir…" she started to reply, "He was quite ferocious in battle earlier," she pointed out while narrowing her eyes onto the container, "but why was it that he seemed regretful of his actions when I returned him?" she questioned to the group, causing them to lightly gasp in surprise upon hearing the revelation.

"Maybe it's a form of mind control from those stones…" Gingka suggested as he placed his right hand upon his chin.

"If that's the case," Ash began with clenched fists, "then Heracross should be in the same boat!" he told him.

"Yeah," he agreed, turning around and jogging off, "Be right back," he promised as he headed out of the crater. The rest of the group then looked over to see the blonde haired woman about to speak with the Artificial Pokémon.

"Magearna, my name is Kimia," she introduced as she gestured towards herself, "princess of Azoth," she added, "It's a pleasure to meet you," she greeted politely, "I'm a descendant of the Azoth royal family," she explained, much to the surprise of the Pokémon trainer as his eyes slightly widened.

"Princess?" he questioned out of shock, "Whoa," he uttered, making his crush giggle a little while standing beside him. Just as the beyblader returned to the crater, the Steel/Fairy type began recalling the time it had been gifted to the former royal as a gift from Nikola, having played with her for days and days. It bowed appropriately afterwards, extending its right arm out to the well-dressed woman.

"Huh?" she uttered in confusion, seeing the tip retract before unleashing a bouquet of pink flowers, "Oh my!" she gasped delightedly, clasping her hands together before herself, "They're beautiful," she complimented to the princess-like being, "Thank you," she said out of gratitude, turning her attention to the quadruped as she trotted up to him, "Volcanion, you've been protecting Magearna this whole time, right?" she inquired.

" _Mm-hmm…_ " he responded with a simple nod after a moment of reluctance, glancing away.

 **X**

The next morning, the entirety of the group was traveling on together, with everyone aside from the Fire/Water type aboard the red hovercraft as the blonde haired woman's passengers, as he walked alongside the river they were floating over. They passed by a pair of Masquerain flying off, discussing the matters of all the events that had conspired for the group.

"For the kingdom…" Kimia uttered once she had heard all of the story, "That's what Rali said, huh?" she guessed to Ash, who was holding onto a railing at the right side of the ship.

"Yeah," he responded, while Mirajane nodded in agreement.

"One thing's for sure," the princess started to say, "Rali believes anything Alva tells him," she explained with a look of concern in her eyes, "That it's all for the good of the kingdom…" she added somberly.

"Does Rali really trust this Alva person that much?" Serena asked, sitting beside Erza and Magearna on the left.

"Yes," the blonde haired woman replied, recalling when her brother was in his youth, "Ever since Rali was a boy," she started to say, "he always adored Nikola," she noted, remembering how he and his former Swirlix were together in the study, "Many times he would spend the entire day in his room, reading old texts and performing experiments," she explained out of her remembrance, "And because of that," she continued, "when he found out that counselor Alva was an arcane science researcher, he started to spend more and more time with him…" she finished, gripping the levers of her hovercraft tightly in frustration, "So now since my brother is involved in this," she kept going, "that means that I am too," she declared, moving the vessel up slightly to avoid some rocks. However, it caused the band around the Pokémon trainer's waist to suddenly activate, with the electrical line appearing as it started to pull him away.

"Uwah, ah!" he yelped upon losing his grip on the railing, banging right into Volcanion's leg to the surprise of the others.

" _Huh…_ " the Steam Pokémon sighed deeply, evidently tired of being hit by the human over and over.

"Hey, why don't we just get onboard the thing they're riding on?" he suggested, pointing towards the hovercraft.

" _Why would I board something humans built?_ " he asked back as a reply, ignoring his question.

"Oh, come on…" the raven haired teen grumbled in annoyance. Mirajane let out a little giggle though, noticing how the pair appeared to be getting along somewhat better despite their physical connection. A while later, the group arrived at the base of the plateau, with Bonnie running forward and outstretching her arms, letting out a quick yawn.

"Uroo?" Squishy uttered as it popped out from her purse, glancing around, "Ur… ruh, roo ooh," he concurred, going back within its comfortable habitat. Unbeknownst to the group, they were being spied on from afar within the trees by the counselor's lackeys: Levi and Cherie, as they both had their binoculars focused upon Kimia.

"The princess…!" the latter of the two gasped in surprise to her partner.

"Yeah…" he replied, taking his own specs down, "We should inform Alva immediately," he recommended. Meanwhile, the Lumiose girl climbed up a rock alongside Dedenne, smiling to spot something in the distance.

"Wow!" she exclaimed, catching the group's attention, "A field of flowers!" she pointed out, seeing the beautiful pink, red, and white blossoms extending throughout the valley.

"Incredible…" Erza said as the wind rushed by, swaying through everyone's hair. Just then, they saw a Fletchling flying in rather quickly, having a serious expression upon his face.

" _Come to greet us, huh?_ " Volcanion guessed as the Normal/Flying type came down in front of him.

"Fletch ling, fletch fle!" he chirped in explanation, sounding panicked.

" _What?!_ " the quadruped growled angrily upon hearing the news. The bird-like creature then flew off, enticing him to follow as he raced off. As that occurred, the band around Ash's waist lit up again, followed by him getting suddenly pulled away by the same electrical line.

"Ah!" he yelped, catching the attentions of the rest of the group as they looked over to see what was happening.

"Fletch, fletch!" the Tiny Robin Pokémon chirped, approaching an Amaura that was slowly trotting towards them, with her body covered in scrapes and bruises, while a net was around her neck.

"Up ahead!" the Pokémon trainer called out as he was upon the Fire/Water type's leg, "Is that an Amaura?!" he asked as he spotted the injured creature.

"Mor…" she groaned in pain before falling onto the ground on her left side. Both the human and the mythical being went up to her, as the former knelt down and grabbed the net around her neck, carefully pulling it apart.

" _She's badly injured…_ " Volcanion noted worriedly.

"Hold on…" the raven haired teen reassured, managing to get the netting off of her.

"Mur…?" she uttered in question, lifting her head up for a moment and moving it before falling unconscious completely.

"Hang in there…" the Omni Force member pleaded, while the rest of the group came over to see what was conspiring.

"Those don't look like normal injuries…" Erza pointed out with narrowed eyes. In the meantime, Gingka spotted the netting his comrade had taken off and set down, blinking out of surprise. Just then, the airship approached, catching their attentions as the wind rushed through their hair.

" _Let's get her onboard!_ " Kimia advised over the system's loudspeakers.

" _I don't need your help!_ " the Steam Pokémon responded angrily, unlatching his arms," _I'll carry Amaura myself,_ " he declared, about to pick the Ice/Rock type up. A truck suddenly drove up alongside the facing of a cliff before them, catching their attentions as they saw the driver pull out a rocket launcher and aim it towards them.

"Look out!" the beyblader shouted, enticing everyone to glance up and see the man too late, as he fired the missile, which struck the quadruped at his right side.

" _Ooh!_ " he grunted in pain as he span back, slamming right into the hovercraft hard and causing it to falter. The princess driving it did her best to keep it maintained, while the one attacked keeled over in as his band activated, with the electrical line pulling Ash and banging into his leg again.

"Er!" he yelped in agony from the impact. The rest of the group glanced out to see what had happened amidst the billowing smoke and dust, seeing the man's truck that had a large cage upon its flatbed.

"Now this big one'll fetch me an even bigger price than that Amaura!" he noted deviously with a smirk, fitting his weapon with another rocket.

" _A Pokémon hunter…_ " Volcanion muttered in realization, struggling to get back on his feet as the armored teen beside him gasped in surprise. Kimia grimaced upon hearing the revelation, adjusting the throttle to get her vessel back into the air. However, its power supply in the form of the blue lights underneath it suddenly deactivated, much to her surprise as she gasped lightly.

"All right Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" the Pokémon trainer commanded, while the Fire/Water type struggled to get back up.

"Pika… CHU!" the Mouse Pokémon exclaimed upon unleashing a massive bolt of lightning towards the vehicle. However, its user managed to drive off and avoid it, heading towards them.

"Guess I'll have to take care of you all first!" he stated, making them all grimace.

" _Er… RRRAHHH!_ " the quadruped roared, unleashing clouds of steam from the nozzles of his arms, shrouding the area within a white veil as the man in the truck couldn't see.

"Whoa!" he yelped, swerving to avoid a large rock in his vehicle's path, only to be heading right towards Mirajane. To his surprise though, she transformed into her primary Satan Soul form, reeling her right arm back and closing her hand into a fist. She let out a loud yell before punching the truck head on, rupturing its grill plate and making it stop instantly, while its user flew out from the force of it. "Wah, ah!" he screamed, falling towards the ground where Erza was waiting, holding up her right fist and letting him hit it with his face, "Guoh!" he grunted in agony, hitting the earth with a goofy, yet pained expression as he passed out, groaning all the while.

"Nice one, girls!" Ash complimented with a pump of his fist, while Gingka smirked and folded his arms before his chest.

"Your girlfriends are quite something…" the princess commented out of amazement as she approached on foot, catching their attentions as their eyes widened.

"GIRLFRIENDS?!" they exclaimed simultaneously with reddening faces. The Fairy Tail girls just smiled at the success of their efforts, with the take-over wizard morphing herself back to normal. They continued their trek up the mountain moments later, with the Steam Pokémon leading the way as he carried Amaura upon his back, while Fletchling was perched atop him.

"Fletch, fletch…" he chirped, surveying the area for any more signs of trouble.

"What a bad man!" Bonnie exclaimed out of anger, puffing out her cheeks as Dedenne sat upon her head.

"Pokémon hunters only care about making money off of selling Pokémon…" Kimia noted, evidently frustrated as well by the idea.

"So bad things like that…" the raven haired teen began to the mythical creature he was walking alongside, with Pikachu being upon his shoulder, "do they happen a lot?" he inquired in concern.

" _Yes,_ " he replied," _but I can usually drive them off by creating steam clouds like this long before they get this far…_ " he explained as they trudged on.

"Up ahead," the beyblader pointed out, catching the attentions of the others as they looked to see the white veil begin to clear, revealing the grasslands and trees within the area, including the large lake beyond them. The group was mildly astonished by the sight, as the armored teen took notice of the large, ring-shaped tree on their right, just as the mist fully cleared away.

" _This is Nebel Plateau,_ " Volcanion stated," _Our home,_ " he added, letting the group admire the majestic feel of the place.

"So many Pokémon!" the Lumiose girl suddenly cried out upon noticing a group of the creatures loitering around the bushes, "And they're _totally_ cute!" she mentioned right before they spotted the humans, panicking and hiding themselves out of fright, much to the surprise of the others. They noticed that practically all of the beings who lived there were hiding themselves away before being spotted. Magearna trotted out and beeped to them in greeting, appearing to assure its friends that the visitors meant no harm. However, as both Electric types of the group approached a Drilbur and a Zigzagoon, the former of the two dug back into his burrow, while the latter ran off into the bushes.

"Pika?" the Mouse Pokémon squeaked in confusion.

"De nay?" the Antenna Pokémon added, perplexed as he tilted his head.

"Strange…" Erza uttered, shocked by how unwelcoming the environment seemed.

"Everybody seems pretty afraid of us…" Ash commented in agreement, looking around.

" _You know why,_ " the Fire/Water type responded to get their attentions," _You're humans, right?_ " he rhetorically inquired.

"It certainly looks like they don't trust us at all…" Kimia concurred as everyone looked on worriedly. A moment later, the Steam Pokémon set Amaura down onto a moss covered stump, as Serena knelt down with a box of medical supplies in her hands.

"All right, I'll treat Amaura quickly," she stated, opening the case and pulling out a few materials, "Don't worry," she reassured.

" _Treat?_ " the quadruped questioned in a sarcastic tone," _Don't just do whatever you want!_ " he demanded, gritting his teeth angrily.

"Don't be so angry!" the young performer advised as a retort, "You've gotta trust us a little bit," she pointed out, followed by Magearna appearing to lecture him, "You help too, Bonnie and Mira," she told the girls.

"Sure!" the younger of the two replied, while the older one nodded.

"Let me help, too," the princess offered as Volcanion started glancing away sheepishly.

" _I could help, too…_ " he chimed in quietly, causing the take-over wizard to giggle a little. Moments later, the blonde haired woman went ahead and sprayed the Ice/Rock type with a Potion, making her writhe around in pain as it stung.

"Mur…!" she moaned, catching the attention of her attendant.

"Does it sting?" she guessed, while the other girls were working hard to assist the Tundra Pokémon, as the short haired one applied medicine to her, "It'll all be over soon," the royal promised reassuringly.

"You've just gotta stay strong," Ash pleaded, closing his right hand into a fist.

"Pika," Pikachu agreed atop his left shoulder. After a few more moments, the Satan Soul user tied a bandage around Amaura's front left leg, seeing it frost up in a matter of seconds.

"The bandage is freezing!" Kimia noted.

"This sort of thing happens with Ice type Pokémon," Clemont explained while adjusting his glasses, "It's proof of the healing," he added as he looked more closely, "That means the medicine's working!" he pointed out.

"Isn't that great, Amaura?" his sister guessed, causing the dinosaur-like creature to perk up.

"Amur!" she agreed happily with a small grin.

" _Forget all the bad times,_ " the Steam Pokémon chimed in, catching her attention," _You're in a safe place now,_ " he stated," _You have food here,_ " he noted, glancing up at the sky," _You have friends, too,_ " he added reassuringly to her.

"Mur…" she purred in agreement, closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep.

" _Sleep now, Amaura,_ " the Fire/Water type said, seeing her breathe slowly as she slumbered. Magearna then placed its arms against the center of its chest, suddenly starting a lovely melody that could be heard by everyone. They all smiled, feeling relaxed by the song as they closed their eyes and swayed to the beat of the music. Even the wild Pokémon from afar felt soothed by the calming tune, whether they were in the trees or on the land itself. As the princess-like being's tune winded down, the group carefully put a blanket over the Ice/Rock type, letting her rest peacefully.

"Pi?" Pikachu squeaked as his ears perked up, turning to spot the natives appearing to watch them from afar. Upon being seen, they hid themselves, while the Litleo among them just trotted along like nothing had happened. They peeked out again, only to be spotted once more, leading to them concealing their appearances. Everyone looked on worriedly at the sight, realizing that the creatures were somewhat frightened.

"They must be scared because _we're_ here…" the scientist realized sadly, while Serena developed a serious expression on her face.

"Now we may be humans," she began to the group as she trotted forward, "but Pokémon are still Pokémon!" she declared, reaching down to her waist, "All right!" she exclaimed with three enlarged Poké Balls in her hands, swinging her arms back, "Now everybody out!" she bellowed, tossing the containers up into the air and letting them pop open, with the light from them pouring out onto the ground. The three separate luminosities came into form, dissipating to reveal her Pokémon: Sylveon, Braixen, and Pancham.

"Veeon!" the former of the three purred excitedly.

"Bray!" the bipedal, foxlike creature exclaimed.

"Cham!" the latter of the group chimed in as he jumped up with a spin, letting his shades shine in the sunlight.

"Yeah! Great idea!" Ash concurred excitedly.

"I'm in!" Clemont stated with a pump of his fist.

"So am I," Gingka chimed in, as both Erza and Mirajane nodded, reaching down to their own waists. Several spherical containers were tossed up into the air, opening up and having their lights pour out onto the ground, revealing each creature one by one.

"Nin ja!" Greninja croaked upon appearing.

"Lucha!" Hawlucha chirped, posing.

"Tal, flame!" Talonflame squawked while spreading out his wings.

"Verrnnn!" Noivern screeched in greeting.

"Che!" Chespin exclaimed, placing his paws at his hips.

"Bun!" Bunnelby squeaked.

"Lux ray!" Luxray roared in greeting.

"Bi shar!" Bisharp exclaimed, stretching his arms into the air.

"Car, bink!" Carbink squeaked delightedly as she hopped around.

"Hurroooh!" Dragonair bellowed.

"Phan, tum!" Phantump squeaked while floating overhead.

"Simee!" Simipour exclaimed as she twirled in place.

"Zor!" Scizor buzzed, punching the air around him. Another pair of lights poured out onto the ground, coming into form and dissipating to reveal both Heracross and Pinsir.

"Her… croh?" the former of the pair questioned nervously, glancing around with his partner.

"No need to be afraid anymore," Erza's voice chimed in reassuringly, making them perk up and look over at her and Gingka, "We're your friends now," she stated before smiling at them.

"Kur…" the Stag Beetle Pokémon uttered in disbelief, touched by the kindness of the people who were once their enemies.

"You see?" Serena questioned to the wild creatures, "You don't need to be afraid of us," she advised sweetly, looking over at her own teammates, "Let's show how friendly we can be!" she recommended, enticing them to all nod in agreement, running off.

"Pika, chu!" Pikachu squeaked, jumping off of his master's shoulder and running with Dedenne towards the natives, as the Ghost/Grass type and Jewel Pokémon followed after them.

"Bray sen!" Braixen exclaimed, pulling out her wand-like branch and using the flame that ignited upon its tip to create rings of fire, which both Sylveon and Pancham leapt through easily. Chespin attempted to do the same, but ended up setting his underside on fire as he struck the last ring.

"PINNNN!" he screeched in pain, catching the Fire type's attentions as she saw running around wildly, also causing the wild creatures to run off upon seeing him approach. He then flipped over and rubbed his rear end against the earth, making the flame go out in smoke. "Che…" he breathed out of relief, while not noticing an Espurr looking at him from the bushes, smiling a little. Hawlucha was showing off his multiple poses to a Psyduck, who was getting quite perplexed upon attempting to copy each one. The two Electric types and the others met with the Zigzagoon once again, allowing him to sniff them in greeting. The Antenna Pokémon did the same back, followed by playfully running around with the raccoon-like creature around their friends before they joined in. Litleo still seemed wary of the visitors, growling as Sylveon approached him. However, she rubbed her ribbon-like feelers across his face, making him widen his eyes for a moment before giving off a relaxed expression, appearing content. Everyone seemed to be getting along in the area, introducing themselves and playing together.

"Kir… li?" a Kirlia chimed in as she approached Bisharp and Scizor, having a blush streaked across her face.

"Looks like they're opening up," Gingka noted as he crossed his arms, seeing both Heracross and Pinsir interacting with the natives as well, having fun.

"Wow, this is great!" Bonnie exclaimed delightedly.

"Yeah!" Serena agreed with her hands clasped before herself.

"Uroo…" Squishy uttered as it poked itself out of its caretaker's bag. Volcanion watched on with a somewhat surprised expression, but still maintained his poise as he knew that only the Pokémon were enjoying themselves together.

" _Guh…!_ " he suddenly grunted out of agony, gritting his teeth as he caught the attentions of the others.

"Volcanion, are you okay?" Ash asked, noticing him grimacing.

"Hey, wait a minute…" Clemont realized, remembering the encounter that occurred earlier, "That blast from the Pokémon hunter!" he pointed out, seeing the distinct black mark on the quadruped's right side.

"You need help, too!" Kimia pointed out seriously.

" _I need nothing,_ " he retorted in reply, turning his head away," _Magearna, stay out of the flower field for a while, okay?_ " he advised before trudging off toward the mountainside.

"But what about you?" the raven haired teen asked worriedly. Without warning, his band suddenly lit up, with the electrical line reappearing and pulling him away in an instant. "AH!" he yelped, banging into his leg.

"Hey, wait for me!" Bonnie cried out, going after the connected pair.

"Bonnie!" her brother shouted, following her.

"We should go, too," Mirajane suggested, getting nods of agreement from both the beyblader and the requip mage before they raced off.

"Pika pi!" Pikachu squeaked, pursuing them with Dedenne and Zigzagoon. Moments later, the group had followed the Steam Pokémon into a cave on the mountainside, which billowed with thick air.

"So warm…" Erza commented as they glanced around. Just then, the armored teen gasped, catching their attentions as they widened their eyes to see the body of water before them.

"It's a… hot spring!" Clemont noted, adjusting his glasses as they started to fog up slightly.

"Like a giant bath!" his sister added as the quadruped walked right into the water.

" _A bath will fix me right up…_ " he grumbled, still groaning in pain.

"Wow…" Ash uttered in amazement at the sight, but then noticed his band activating again, with the electrical line suddenly reeling him into the water in an instant, splashing down against the Fire/Water type's leg in another yelp. The sudden feeling of the hot liquid around him caused the Omni Force member to widen his eyes, immediately emerging from it and breathing rapidly. The scientist on the edge appeared to panic upon witnessing what had happened, much to the confusion of the rest of the group.

"Quick!" he cried out, pointing off to the side, "Ash, you've gotta hurry and get outta there!" he exclaimed, catching his attention.

"Huh?" he uttered in confusion. All of a sudden, the black areas of his suit began to inflate, much to his shock.

"Your suit's absorbing the water!" the gym leader pointed out in a frenzied state. Unfortunately, there was little he could do as his friend's armor became bigger and bigger, breaking the metal around it before the spandex exploded into pieces.

"WAAAHHH!" the former user screamed, wearing only his white and red-striped tank top and blue boxers before plummeting back down into the water, as pieces of his outfit fell onto Volcanion.

"And then some…!" the blonde haired boy added out of shock.

"Yikes…" Gingka uttered, cringing at the thought of the occurrence happening much sooner.

"Uh, heh, heh…" Bonnie laughed nervously as the Pokémon trainer came up to the surface to hear a scoff from the Steam Pokémon.

" _You humans are an annoying bunch…_ " he muttered bluntly, making him pout as he frowned.

"Hm…" Erza hummed, placing her hand upon her chin, "This hot spring does seem like the best place to invigorate ourselves…" she noted while putting her hands at her hips.

"I think so, too!" Mirajane agreed, smiling brightly. The beyblader just blinked in confusion, staring over at them.

"What are you thinking?" he asked nervously while arching an eyebrow.

"Heh, heh," the requip wizard laughed, "Relaxing, of course," she responded, suddenly enveloping herself within a golden light, as the girl beside her did the same. When it dissipated, everyone gasped to see them both donning two-piece bikinis of white and black-grey respectively, revealing much of their bodies. The Lumiose girl's eyes sparkled at the sight of how beautiful they were, while her brother just turned away quickly. A trickle of blood came out from Ash's nose from the sight of his crush in the swimsuit as he blushed madly, while Volcanion blinked in surprise, but managed look off to the side with another scoff.

"Okay, isn't that a little much?" Gingka questioned sarcastically, folding his arms over his chest.

"Would you prefer we wear nothing at all?" Erza guessed as a retort, causing both him and his fellow Omni Force member to cringe and immediately turn crimson in embarrassment.

"Fair point…" the former concurred as he lowered his head, not noticing the scarlet haired woman approach him.

"You look like you could use some relaxation, too," she noted, grabbing him by the scarf.

"Huh?" he uttered in surprise before being tossed towards the water in a yelp by her. He accidentally crashed into his comrade, splashing down before re-emerging with him, spitting up water. "Ash…" he began to mutter, "what the heck are we dealing with?" he asked rhetorically, causing him to chuckle nervously. The Steam Pokémon glanced back to see the group of four ready to enjoy the hot spring despite their earlier antics, much to his annoyance, yet he didn't seem to mind too much.

 **X**

The evening rolled in hours later, with the crescent moon lighting the sky. Both Clemont and Kimia were working on repairing the hovercraft, as a Litwick and a Gulpin watched them work from across a small river behind a rock. The former human's Pokémon provided assistance to their owner with getting tools while watching him work, as a spotlight from his backpack allowed him to see clearly, along with Luxray sparking with electricity.

"Wrench, please," he told his teammates.

"Bun bee!" Bunnelby responded, taking out the tool from the kit and handing it over to Chespin.

"Che!" he squeaked as he turned around and gifted his master with it.

"Thanks a lot," he replied, going back to making adjustments. He didn't notice the princess climb down the ladder, seeing him still working.

"Working with gadgets along with Pokémon," she noted, catching his attention, "I'm sure it must've been like this for Nikola, too," she mentioned as he nodded in agreement.

"Nikola thought the world needed both humans and Pokémon to be in harmony," he explained as he finished his task, "which is what I believe inspired him to create Magearna," he stated, turning to face the royal before petting the Spiny Nut Pokémon, "She's the living embodiment of the philosophy of arcane science!" he said, smiling alongside his comrades as they were gathered around him, "At least that's the way I prefer to look at that," he added, glancing over to see the Steel/Fairy type playing alongside Carbink and the healed Amaura with his sister as they had set up camp for the evening, "It's such a beautiful idea!" he exclaimed happily. Elsewhere on the mountainside, Ash and Pikachu were looking over the plateau with Volcanion.

"So you're always here, watching out for everyone…" the former of the group realized, amazed by the thought as he sat upon a rock beside his partner.

" _Hmph,_ " the quadruped scoffed, catching their attentions, _"That's because I never know when I might explode,_ " he noted to them.

"You've got that right!" the raven haired teen agreed, chuckling with the Electric type.

"Pika, chu!" he squeaked cheekily as the Steam Pokémon let out a quick laugh.

" _Why don't you two get some sleep?_ " he suggested, still lying down.

"You're keeping watch," the Omni Force member pointed out, "I am too!" he declared proudly.

"Pika, pi ka chu!" the Mouse Pokémon concurred in the same manner.

" _Do as you like,_ " the mythical creature responded in a bored and uncaring manner.

"I will!" the human stated in reply.

"Pika, pika," his teammate said. A while passed before the both of them fell asleep, lying against the Fire/Water type.

" _Hmph,_ " he scoffed upon noticing," _Heh, heh…_ " he chuckled, looking back out at the plateau. He suddenly perked up as he sensed, noticing a figure approaching. However, it turned out to be Mirajane, who was carrying a blanket in her hands.

"Don't worry, it's only me," she reassured, going up to him.

" _I wouldn't take chances after what you and that redhead did to the Pokémon hunter…_ " he retorted with a smirk, making her giggle. She then trotted over to her beloved and his longtime friend, unfolding the cloth and placing it over them carefully.

"You're starting to get used to us, aren't you?" she guessed to the red being, who scoffed.

" _Maybe a little…_ " he admitted as he glanced off to the side. He looked back at Ash for a moment, staring at him with curiosity in his eyes. " _Hey, girlie,_ " he began to the take-over wizard, catching her attention, " _what's this kid mean to you anyway?_ " he asked, " _He might full of himself for taking me on, but he's always there for you and the others…_ " he noted, staring back at him, " _Why do you like him so much?_ " he questioned, making her blink in surprise.

"That's an easy one," she responded afterwards with a smile, squatting down to meet the teen's eye level as he snoozed, "It's because he's a likeable person to be with," she told him, causing him to lightly gasp in astonishment, seeing her gently touch the raven haired person's cheek with her left hand, "He's always there for his friends, even those he's only just met," she mentioned, "That's why they all like him so much," she stated, blushing slightly afterwards, "And then… there's the word I'd use to say how I feel…" she added, much to the confusion of Volcanion as he tilted his head.

" _The word you'd use?_ " he questioned, evidently perplexed. He then saw the Satan Soul user peck the Omni Force member on the nose with her lips, standing up afterwards.

"I love him," she confessed with rosy cheeks, "He's been there for me, made me laugh, smile…" she listed off, "even saved my life," she added, shocking the Fire/Water type as he gasped.

" _Saved YOUR life?!_ " he questioned in absolute disbelief, seeing her walk off.

"You'd be surprised at what he can do," she noted with a giggle, leaving soon afterwards. The Steam Pokémon was admittedly surprised by her response, glancing back at Ash once more.

" _Love, huh?_ " he inquired, laughing a little before looking back down at the plateau.

 **END**

 **Well, bonds between humans and Pokémon are continuing to form between everyone, including Volcanion! Let's just hope that by making these connections, they can trust each other…**

 **Anyways, we'll be back soon, folks! Up next is a new chapter of "The Mega Protocol" and the starters of other stories! Stay tuned!**

 **SCENARIO**

 **Ash Ketchum: Pikachu, Iron Tail! Greninja, Water Shuriken!**

 **Pikachu: Chu… PIKA! *spins and activates Iron Tail***

 **Greninja: *throws giant Water Shuriken***

 **Nightwing: *blocks Pikachu's tail with the escrima sticks before kicking him away***

 **Pikachu: Pika! *hits the ground hard***

 **Nightwing: *uses a grappling gun to avoid the water shuriken* What's a ninja to a circus performer?**

 **Greninja: *suddenly appears behind him and punches him with his glowing right fist***

 **Nightwing: Ergh! *falls but jumps back to his feet* Fair enough...**

 **Erza Scarlet: Requip! *requips into Purgatory armor* RRRAAAAHHH! *attempts to attack Tommy***

 **Tommy Oliver: *dodges a few hits and slashes Erza with the Sword of Darkness***

 **Erza Scarlet: AGH! *steels herself strikes him with her mace***

 **Tommy Oliver: GAH! *glances at her* That's nothing compared to this! BRACHIO STAFF! *summons staff and spins it before aiming it her* HA!**

 **Erza Scarlet: Summon whatever weapon you like. It makes no difference to me.**

 **Tommy Oliver: You're not dealing with an average or a recent power ranger. Every ranger usually sees me as a legend, and they're not wrong. *charges at her***

 **Raiden: *tries to take Gingka out with a stealth attack with the sword between his feet***

 **Gingka Hagane: *dodges quickly* Too close! *tries slicing at Raiden***

 **Raiden: *blocks the hit before putting the Murasama in its sheath and brings out another weapon* Here's Polearm!**

 **Gingka Hagane: Huh?**

 **Raiden: Polearm is a weapon made out of the arms of dwarf geckos. It can also be used as a whip! *uses Polearm as a whip to take Gingka's sword before using it to throw him down hard***

 **Gingka Hagane: GAH! *grimaces and reaches down for his beylauncher***

 **Mirajane Strauss: HUHRRAAAAHH! *charges towards Spirit***

 **Spirit Reaper: Too slow! *uses speed to avoid attacks and summons the party arm cannons***

 **Mirajane Strauss: Wha-?**

 **Spirit Reaper: *appears in front of Mirajane and shoot some confetti at her***

 **Mirajane Strauss: Ergh! *braces herself***

 **Spirit Reaper: Wait for it... *jumps away before throwing a rose at the confetti having it detonate and explode***

 **Mirajane Strauss: AGH!**

 **Spirit Reaper: Hey, guys! How about we switch?**

 **Nightwing: My thoughts exactly. *throws plenty of smoke pellets***

 **Ash Ketchum: Ah! Can't see!**

 **Nightwing: *throws wing-dings in front of Erza and detonates***

 **Erza: Ergh! *keels over onto her knee***

 **Tommy Oliver: *appears behind Ash and flips him over***

 **Ash Ketchum: Whoa! *hits ground* GUH!**

 **Spirit Reaper: *teleports in front of Gingka* REAPER PUNCH! *punches him down***

 **Gingka Hagane: AH!**

 **Mirajane Strauss: Everyone!**

 **Raiden: *uses the Polearm to trip Mira***

 **Mirajane Strauss: Ergh…**

 **Raiden: I got another weapon you wouldn't be expecting. *summons a sai* Better be ready for a tactical sai!**

 **Ash Ketchum: *gets back up* Let's go guys!**

 **Pikachu: Pika!**

 **Greninja: Gren!**

 **Nightwing: Tommy, be aware of Ash and his team. You may have power of the Morphing Grid, but he can get past it even if he doesn't know how to.**

 **Tommy Oliver: Right. If things won't be in my favor… *grabs another morpher* I can always use this.**

 **Ash Ketchum: Pikachu, Electro Ball!**

 **Pikachu: Pika, pika… *charges Electro Ball on his tail* CHU PI! *fires it***

 **Tommy Oliver: I don't think so! *hits the Electro Ball with the Brachio Staff sending it back at Pikachu***

 **Ash Ketchum: Dodge it!**

 **Pikachu: *avoids the Electro Ball***

 **Ash Ketchum: *lunges at Tommy* LARIAT! *wraps arm around him and throws him back several yards***

 **Tommy Oliver: Ergh! *falls but rolls to avoid another hit***

 **Mirajane Strauss: *punches Raiden away***

 **Raiden: Ugh! *lands on both hands before jumping over* I'll just have to go all out then! *throws the sai at Mirajane without hurting her***

 **Mirajane Strauss: Huh? *notices line attached to it***

 **Raiden: *kicks her down* This can be used as a grappling sai. *removes weapon before bringing out the Murasama***

 **Mirajane Strauss: Ergh...**

 **Nightwing: *backs away with a flip before throwing another wing-ding at Erza***

 **Erza Scarlet: *blocks it with her mace before requipping into her Giant's armor* Take this! *punches him fiercely***

 **Nightwing: Agh! *falls before smirking at her* Of course...I was trained by the best. And I suppose you know who that is. *throws another wing-ding at her having tie her up as a rope before zapping her with electricity***

 **Erza Scarlet: AAAAHHH!**

 **Nightwing: *rushes at Erza and attacks her with a punch***

 **Erza Scarlet: Ergh!**

 **Gingka Hagane: Let it rip! *launches Samurai Pegasus* Samurai Tornado! *has Pegasus unleash a huge burst of wind***

 **Spirit Reaper: Whoa! *gets caught in the wind***

 **Gingka Hagane: *leaps at Spirit* Tornado Slice! *slices him***

 **Spirit Reaper: *falls and lands hard on his head* Ow...**

 **Gingka Hagane: You okay?**

 **Spirit Reaper: *jumps back up* No it's all good. I felt a lot worse. BURNING WIND! *uses scythe to throw a fire tornado at Gingka***

 **Gingka Hagane: Heh. *slices the fire easily with his sword***

 **Greninja: *punches Tommy back***

 **Tommy Oliver: *pants and powers down* Alright. Guess I'll resort to this! *grabs another morpher***

 **Ash Ketchum: Huh?**

 **Tommy Oliver: WHITE TIGER! *morphs into the White Ranger***

 **Ash Ketchum: Whoa, what?**

 **Pikachu: Pikah…!**

 **Tommy Oliver: This is my ultimate Ranger form. The White Ranger is here to stay! SABA! *summons sword***

 **Nightwing: Every day, I start to believe that having no powers can be as good as everything else. Let's see how much magic you have to keep me down.**

 **Erza Scarlet: *adjusts her neck with a crack* Gladly.**

 **Nightwing: *puts both sticks together and makes it become a staff* I'm ready.**

 **Raiden: Ergh! *has head down feeling the pain from within***

 **Mirajane Strauss: *kicks him back***

 **Raiden: ...**

 **Mirajane Strauss: RRRAAAAHH! *punches him again***

 **Raiden: *opens his eye as it went red and his body went red also* Pain... this is why I fight... *head-butts Mirajane***

 **Mirajane Strauss: Grr… *slides back, but still stands***

 **Raiden: *laughs* It's time for Jack the Ripper... to let her rip!**

 **Mirajane Strauss: Uh oh…**

 **Spirit Reaper: Alright, no more games. *puts all rings on***

 **Gingka Hagane: Here it comes…**

 **Spirit Reaper: EQUESTRIAN MODE! *ponies up***

 **Greninja: Neen, jah…**

 **Spirit Reaper: Alright Omni Force! We'll show you what Team Spirit is all about!**

 **END SCENARIO**

 **Next up is another chapter of "The Mega Protocol"! After that, I'll be making a little announcement. Nothing too serious, just something to let everyone know what I'll be doing for the rest of the stories.**

 **QUOTE**

 _ **There's no denying that Ash is strong. Even as he fails, he'll get right back up again.**_

 **Erza Scarlet**

 **To her friends in "A Real Icebreaker!"**


	5. PART III

**Get ready for another blast! Folks, we're moving right along with this crossover, and it's about time to keep things going! As I've recently announced, this will be my focus throughout the rest of the semester. Once it ends, I will be working on a few other stories before the summer, which will be reserved for "Omni Force: WAR" and "Pokémon Sun & Moon: The Challenge of a Lifetime".**

 **Now back to where we were with "Volcanion & The Mechanical Marvel"!**

 **VOLCANION & THE MECHANICAL MARVEL**

The next morning arrived rather quickly as the sun dawned upon Nebel Plateau.

"Ta-daaah!" Serena exclaimed as she held up her crush's short-sleeved jacket and dark pants, standing in front of him with Mirajane beside her, "Your clothes are all clean!" she told him, handing off the articles to him.

"Wow!" he said, taking them into his hands, "Thanks a lot, Serena," he added in gratitude, while Volcanion was still sleeping.

"Pi kachu!" Pikachu squeaked delightedly. After his master got his jacket back on with his pants, he felt someone place his hat atop his head, being the take-over wizard as she giggled at him. He blushed madly in embarrassment, turning away and tipping the brim of his cap over his eyes. Later that morning, the native Pokémon curiously watched as the performer, the Lumiose girl, and the Fairy Tail beauties were working together to make breakfast, with Braixen there stirring a mixture in a bowl with a whisk. Magearna looked on right near them as they were hard at work, but then suddenly spotted a Sentret going down to let a Munchlax climb atop her back in order to grab the berries upon the tabletop, catching the group's attention. The plumper of the two Normal types took a moment to find his balance, reaching out sneakily to try and take one of the fruits. However, the Artificial Pokémon let out a beep, placing its right arm before him to stop him.

"Muh?" he uttered in confusion, hearing it beep and shake its head disapproval, appearing to advise him and the others to wait until they were finished. They ran off to go and play in the meantime, making the group at the table smile happily. Sylveon, Chespin, Amaura, Phantump, Carbink, and Pancham followed soon afterwards, ready to enjoy the day.

"Her, cro!" Heracross cried out as he clashed his horn with Scizor's pincers. Both he and Pinsir were sparring with the Bug/Steel type and Bisharp nearby the river, where Clemont was experimenting with Gingka on a band-shaped lock over an engine block that was similar to those on their bound friends. The former's Aipom Arm had a spinning, circular blade that only slightly cut through the thick metal of the band.

"No good…" the beyblader muttered in realization, scratching the top of his head, while a Gulpin and a Litwick eyed them curiously.

"Simee…" Simipour mentioned with an upset look on her face.

"Looks like this won't be easy…" the gym leader admitted, trying to think of a solution as his device continued to slowly slice away at the metal.

"Gur in…" the Poison type chimed in, catching their attentions as they turned to see him waddle over to them with his friend.

"Bun, by?" Bunnelby asked, wondering what he was planning on doing as he moved closer to the lock that the blonde haired boy was trying to break. Reeling his head back and taking a deep breath of air, the Stomach Pokémon shot a wad of greenish acid from his mouth onto the metal, making most of it melt away instantly and rust, much to the surprise of the others. Letting out a laugh in realization, the scientist re-readied the saw blade, easily slicing through the rusted metal.

"It worked!" he exclaimed happily. The shaggy haired teen beside him smiled, knowing that a pair of their companions would soon be relieved upon finding out how they could be freed from each other. Meanwhile, the native and visiting Pokémon all brought back plenty of berries, gathering them up in a large pile beside the table, making the ones there all smile excitedly.

"Yay! They brought all those berries for us!" Bonnie exclaimed in delight.

"Phan!" Phantump squeaked, floating over to her trainer's side and making her giggle happily. From the mountainside, Ash, Pikachu, and Volcanion watched on at the sight below, as the latter of the three appeared to be quite surprised by the development down on the field.

" _Hmph,_ " he scoffed, catching the attentions of the others with him, " _Incredible,_ " he said, " _I never thought I'd see humans and Pokémon getting along together here…_ " he confessed, causing the Pokémon trainer near him to grin. However, his expression shifted into a frown as he thought of something.

"All these Pokémon…" he began as his partner looked on sadly as well, "They've been hurt by humans, haven't they?" he guessed, keeping his hands upon his knees.

" _Yes, they have,_ " the Fire/Water type answered with a simple nod.

"You too?" the raven haired teen inquired to him, leading to a brief moment of silence between them.

" _Don't worry about what happened to me,_ " he replied while turning his head away. The Omni Force member just let off a small smile back towards him, but then suddenly felt the wind pick up as he heard something approach them.

"Huh?" he uttered in confusion before seeing that the hovercraft was there, having been fully repaired with Kimia piloting it.

"All fixed and good as new!" Clemont called out from the seating area of the vessel, waving to the group alongside Gingka, Simipour, Bunnelby, Luxray, Gulpin, and Litwick, "We'll be working with you next!" he promised to his friend.

"With us?" he questioned, arching an eyebrow.

"Pika?" Pikachu uttered with a tilt of his head. Moments later, the scientist and the beyblader had disembarked from the ship, as the former readied the circular blade on his device, letting it spin rapidly.

"Go ahead, Gulpin," he advised to the Poison type in front of him. He waddled forward slightly towards the raven haired teen, taking a deep breath of air and shooting another wad of greenish acid right onto his band, making most of it melt away and rust. The human bound was delightedly surprised by the development, and it wasn't long before his glasses-wearing friend sliced it right off of him. The same procedure was done to Volcanion's, easily coming off in the same manner.

" _Egh!_ " he grunted, shaking the remainder of the band off of his leg, " _It's about time!_ " he complained, evidently frustrated with long they had taken to find a solution, while the Pokémon trainer stretched himself out happily, overjoyed about being unbound.

"It worked!" he exclaimed, going up to the blob-like creature and squatting down, "Thank you so much, Gulpin!" he said out of gratitude, suddenly hugging him.

"Guh… guh…" he squeaked nervously, evidently afraid of the embrace as he began squirming, catching the attention of the other Omni Force member in the area, "RRRIIIN!" he squealed loudly, leaping out of his arms and hopping away immediately, hiding behind the Steam Pokémon's front right leg as he nervously peeked out.

"Huh?" Ash uttered out of confusion.

"Pika?" the Mouse Pokémon said, tilting his head once more.

" _This little one has his reasons…_ " the Fire/Water type replied as he looked down at the Stomach Pokémon, ' _Anyway, the bands are gone,_ ' he pointed out, turning his head to face the cap-wearing teen, ' _Leave,_ ' he advised in a blunt and direct tone, making him develop a frustrated expression, standing back up.

"Even after _all_ that's happened?!" he responded in question, clenching his fists angrily, "After everybody's starting to get along so well?!" he mentioned as his partner climber onto his left shoulder.

" _Doesn't mean anything,_ " the mythical quadruped replied while turning away.

"It does too!" the raven haired teen retorted angrily.

" _You only did that because we were stuck together!_ " Volcanion shouted back, gnashing his teeth.

"Hey, I really like Pokémon," the trainer stated as his expression shifted into a grin, glancing over at Electric type upon him, "I want to protect them, too!" he added, "If you're gonna be a Pokémon trainer," he kept going, not noticing the ire rising within the red being beside them as he was shaking, "then you've gotta learn how to make Pokémon feel safe," he finished explaining, "Right, buddy?" he guessed to his teammate.

"Pika, pika!" he squeaked in agreement. However, steam burst out from the holes on the Steam Pokémon's arms like a train whistle as he turned to face the human in rage.

" _Spare me your pretty words…_ " he muttered angrily, " _or I'll blast you!_ " he roared in declaration.

"You try it!" Ash challenged with Pikachu shouting alongside him, getting right into his face as they growled at each other. Everyone around looked quite nervous at the incoming conflict, as Clemont and Bunnelby stuttered, while Simipour hid behind Luxray.

"We're staying," a familiar voice suddenly chimed in, getting their attentions as they looked over to see Gingka there, "With Team Rocket and those other guys with the Mega Evolutions after us," he started to say, trotting up to his best friend and the mythical quadruped, "I think it's best we stay here and help you out," he stated, "Just until this whole thing is over…" he added to the Fire/Water type. He merely scoffed in response, blowing out steam from his nostrils before turning away and stomping toward the other side of the cavern.

" _I'm going to sleep…_ " he grumbled, lying down upon the ground. The others looked on worriedly, wondering how they would even be able to cooperate with him without his trust.

 **PART III**

Back below on the plateau, Squishy was dozing upon a rock nearby the river, appearing content as it lied flat on the surface. Meanwhile, the group from afar at the table was still working, having made several Poké Puffs for both their own and the native creatures.

"So he's still being stubborn, huh?" Erza inquired after hearing an explanation from the beyblader, who had arrived moments ago with the scientist and Kimia.

"Yeah," he replied with glancing back over to see Heracross and Pinsir happily enjoying their food alongside their new friends, "I think Ash is only one who can handle Volcanion at this point," he admitted, glancing up at the mountainside, "At least, in terms of talking with him…" he mentioned while nervously scratching at his cheek.

"Ash…" Mirajane uttered worriedly, hoping that he was okay as she had seen him head off with a plate of the treats she and others made just a moment ago. The Pokémon all savored their food, eating heartily as the humans looked on with smiles. The princess and the rookie performer were still working on making more, glad to see the happy faces of the ones who ate their prepared goodies.

"Veeon!" Sylveon purred in greeting as she approached Litleo and Espurr, holding an orange and a green Pokémon in her ribbon-like feelers.

"Lit… leo?" the Fire/Normal type uttered in confusion, seeing her set the treats down right before them, inviting them to try and eat. He carefully sniffed at the one in front of him, taking a bite and hopping up and down delightedly, eating the rest of it quickly. The Restraint Pokémon took a small bite of her own, letting off a little grin afterwards. Back up at the mountainside, the raven haired teen had a plate of Poké Puffs in his hands, trotting over to the mythical quadruped with Pikachu, catching his attention along with those of Gulpin and Litwick.

" _What do you want now?_ " he asked in annoyance while standing up, as both smaller creatures with him hid themselves.

"I brought you guys some Poké Puffs," the human answered, holding out the platter, "Serena and the others made them," he mentioned.

"Pika!" the Electric type squeaked. The two of them then noticed the Stomach Pokémon peek out from the red being's front right leg nervously.

"Guh!" he squealed, going back into hiding.

" _You were surprised back there, weren't you?_ " Volcanion guessed to him, making him perk up, " _They just didn't understand,_ " he pointed out to him, " _Please, forgive them,_ " he advised in a soft tone. The Poison type just squeaked nervously in response, still a little concerned.

"Sorry, Gulpin…" Ash apologized, evidently regretful for what had happened as he squatted down to reach his eye level.

"Guh rin…" he replied with a nod, making the Omni Force member grin.

" _This little one came here after being abandoned by his trainer…_ " the Steam Pokémon explained, chiming into the conversation as he caught their attentions.

"Huh?" the human uttered in surprise.

"Pika?" the Mouse Pokémon asked out of confusion, tilting his head to the side.

" _I don't know if anything happened before that…_ " the Fire/Water type stated, looking back at the horizon, " _He doesn't tell me, and I don't ask,_ " he added, " _The only thing I know is that right before his trainer left, he gave Gulpin… a big hug…_ " he told them somberly, much to their surprise before he looked back down at the plateau to see the creatures; native and visiting alike playing alongside each other, " _All of the Pokémon here have been wounded by the selfishness and lies of humans,_ " he explained to them as he witnessed Bonnie, Clemont, Serena, and Magearna skipping along with the creatures over a river, " _They may be laughing now,_ " he continued, " _but their wounds are deeply rooted,_ " he pointed out to them, " _And that's the reason I can't trust humans…_ " he finished, " _Pokémon are incapable of lying,_ " he stated, turning his head to face the raven haired teen and his partner, " _but humans are and always do!_ " he bellowed angrily. Hearing his words brought an upset expression onto Pikachu's face, as he jumped down from his master's shoulder.

"Pika?" he questioned in frustration to the mythical being, "Pika, pika! Pika pi!" he pointed out in an accusing manner, looking over at the cap-wearing teen.

" _Really?_ " Volcanion questioned back with suspicion in his tone, " _This one doesn't lie?_ " he guessed sarcastically.

"Pika!" the Electric type replied immediately with a nod, "Pi ka chu, pi kachu!" he mentioned to him.

" _He fights with all he has to protect the ones he loves?_ " he translated, narrowing his eyes onto the Mouse Pokémon.

"Pika, pika!" he replied happily, making his owner smile.

"Thanks for that," he said to him in gratitude, getting his attention, "You're right," he added.

"Pika, chu!" he squeaked back in response.

" _Both of you are spewing nothing but flowery sentiments!_ " the Fire/Water type shouted at them, much to their surprise, " _I'm… sorry…_ " he apologized afterwards for his outburst, " _Before the others get used to you, I want you to leave,_ " he advised, seeing everyone gathered at the ring-shaped tree at the heart of the plateau, " _Though I'm very grateful to you for what you did for Magearna and Amaura…_ " he admitted in a calmer tone. The Pokémon trainer then set down the plate of treats right beside them.

"Here," he offered, "Go ahead and eat," he said as Gulpin excitedly waddled over to the other side the platter, allowing the Steam Pokémon to sniff at the pile of Poké Puffs carefully before taking a large bite of them. He chewed slowly, having a satisfied look on his face as he swallowed.

" _Not bad,_ " he confessed with a smirk.

"If you like it, then why don't you just say so?" Ash asked while slouching, letting Pikachu climb up onto his shoulder.

" _Hmph,_ " the mythical creature scoffed, turning his head away, " _Eat, both of you,_ " he advised to the smaller ones there, enticing them to go over as they smiled excitedly. The Litwick went ahead and took a pink goodie from the plate, while the Poison type practically inhaled over half of what remained. They both voiced sounds of delight, making the raven haired teen laugh happily. " _Hm…_ " the red being hummed, looking back down at the plateau to see Mirajane, Erza, and Gingka joining the others at the ring-shaped tree, putting his focus onto the former in particular, " _Hey, human,_ " he chimed in, catching the attention of the Omni Force member as he and his partner both perked up, " _That girl down there with the white hair…_ " he started to say, still looking towards her, " _What exactly does she mean to you?_ " he asked, remembering how the cap-wearing teen had reacted when around her. He widened his eyes slightly out of surprise, glancing down at the plateau to see her playing alongside Phantump and Dragonair happily.

"That's… not an easy one to answer…" he admitted as a response, sitting down on the earth, "At first, I thought it was just a crush because of how pretty and kind she was…" he explained with a somber expression coming across his face, which switched to a small grin, "but then… she called me a hero…" he said, surprising Volcanion slightly as he blinked, "Since then, I've always tried to be there for her," he stated, "even though I know she's stronger than me," he mentioned with a little chuckle.

" _Heh,_ " the Fire/Water type laughed, " _So you love her just like she loves you, huh?_ " he inquired, making the Pokémon trainer gasp in surprise, blushing madly.

"H-How did you know?" he stuttered in question to him, evidently embarrassed.

" _She told me last night, while you dozed off,_ " he replied, looking back down, " _I once wondered if there was ever a relationship between humans that was similar to those of Pokémon…_ " he confessed, closing his eyes for a moment to think.

"It's just like you and Magearna, huh?" Ash guessed, causing him to gasp in surprise, turning away in embarrassed manner.

" _Well… I guess so…_ " he replied nervously while chuckling a little.

"Pi?" Pikachu suddenly squeaked, catching their attentions as they saw that his ears had perked up, "Pika?" he questioned, glancing back down at the plateau.

" _Hm?_ " the Steam Pokémon said out of confusion, looking out to see a black smog heading towards them.

"What is that?!" Bonnie questioned, still near the tall tree with everyone else as they worriedly looked on.

"Haze…" Gingka uttered in realization, narrowing his eyes onto the black cloud. Erza took a closer look and noticed the figure lurking within it, being the white Mega Gengar as he was letting the black smog come out from his mouth.

"Garrr…" he sounded off ominously as he continued to expel the veil. The native Pokémon all took off in a panic, hurriedly rushing away as the cloud grew closer. Some of them dug into the ground, while others headed over to the large rock near the center.

"Everyone, stay close!" the requip mage advised loudly, covering her mouth with her left arm. Meanwhile, the Pokémon trainer ran down the mountain with his partner alongside Volcanion, going into the smog as it immediately shrouded their visibility of the area. Down below, the humans and Magearna all ran over and gasped to see that the only thing the creatures could see aside from the smog was the rock they were nearby. All of a sudden, several red and black striped chains burst out of the ground beside them, much to their shock as they quickly ran away. Unfortunately, some of them were caught by the restraints, as Noivern and a Chesnaught had them wrapped around their forms while an energy field surrounded the others below them, preventing them from escaping.

"Ph-Phan…" Phantump stuttered in fright as tears formed in his eyes. Everyone was stunned by what had just conspired, but recomposed themselves as they realized what they needed to do.

"Pinsir!" the scarlet haired woman cried out.

"Braixen! Talonflame!" Serena yelled.

"Scizor! Heracross!" Gingka shouted.

"Dragonair!" Mirajane ordered.

"Luxray! Greninja!" Clemont called out. The Stag Beetle Pokémon shot a gigantic, purple-black beam of light, followed a torrent of flames from the wand-like branch of the Fire type, who was assisted by the Scorching Pokémon as his wings glowed a bright blue before he flapped them, launching several crescent-shaped blades of energy. Meanwhile, the Bug/Steel type had his claws shine in a bright white light, crossing them before extending them outward to unleash several shuriken-like discs of energy, followed by a barrage of greenish yellow pellets from the Single Horn Pokémon beside him. The Dragon type's pearl upon her neck glowed as she fired a powerful blizzard from her mouth, while the Ninja and Gleam Eyes Pokémon launched attacks of throwing stars made of water and multiple yellow stars that glistened respectively. When the attacks collided, it suddenly caused red electricity to surge throughout the chains, electrocuting the creatures within it as they screamed in pain, much to everyone's shock.

"No…" the beyblader uttered in disbelief, reaching down to his belt to grab his beylauncher. Volcanion quickly ran through the smog without any regard for his sight, with Ash and Pikachu still following him.

"Everyone!" the human of the three cried out, catching their attentions as they gasped excitedly in surprise.

"Ash!" the performer responded happily. All of a sudden though, a Camerupt leapt out from beyond the large tree, landing upon the ground hard on his feet.

"Camerrr… UPT!" he bellowed, letting lava erupt out of the volcano-like holes on his back.

"WAH!" the others yelped as they were all blown back by the blast. The Fire/Water type who had just arrived managed to brace himself along with those following him, as the force of the explosion caused the smog to dissipate completely into thin air. As they looked out to see who had attacked, they gasped to see the ones before them. Standing at the roots of the tree with the Eruption Pokémon were, Glalie, Alakazam, a Banette, a Manectric, a Houndoom, a Tyranitar, a Pidgeot, a Beedrill, a Swampert, an Aggron, and a Steelix; all of them being led by Levi and Cherie, who smirked at their work.

"You two!" Kimia shouted in realization, while Mirajane and the others glared up at them. Developing an angered expression upon its face, Magearna transformed its right arm into a cannon-like device, unleashing a beam of bright pink light. It struck part of the tree right beside the two subordinates, making it burst in an explosion of smoke.

"Well, well…" the male of the two uttered in repetition as he held a remote-shaped device in his right hand, pressing the red button upon it. All of a sudden, the electrical cage began electrocuting the captive creatures again, causing them to cry out in pain. Everyone watched on in fright at the scene. "If you try to resist…" the male captor started to say, clicking the button again to intensify the electricity in the prison, also causing the chains to tighten as they shattered a rock they were bound around. As it finally subsided, everyone within moaned in unbearable pain, as sparks of red electricity emanated from their bodies.

"You fiends!" Erza snarled, enveloping herself within a golden light to the surprise of their enemies. When it dissipated, it revealed her donning an armor that was gold and light bluish in color. Its breastplate was lined with gold trimmings and had thin plates extending upwards to surround her neck. Upon her head, she bore a yellow band with two ribbons upon it, while her hair had become stylized into a long, braided ponytail. To top it off, she was carrying a long, single spear, which had a very large blade and a decorated circle shaped like a shield attached to the staff in her right hand. She spun her weapon before planting it against the earth, unleashing a volley of lightning bolts that struck the opposing Pokémon before them, making most of them cry out in pain.

"Nice one, Erza!" Clemont cheered with a pump of his fist.

"I wouldn't celebrate just yet, girlie…" the beret-wearing woman chimed in mockingly, catching the requip user's attention as she gasped to see the Steel/Ground type lunge out at her with a white aura shrouding his head, making him appear black and white. She managed to jump away just in the nick of time, but was suddenly attacked by the Mud Fish Pokémon, who struck her in the chest with his right fist glowing in a reddish-orange light.

"GAH!" she shrieked slamming into the ground hard before rolling across it.

"Erza!" Gingka cried out, gritting his teeth as he was prepared to tap the Key Stone upon his glove. Scizor got into a ready stance as well, but all of a sudden, the both of them found themselves shrouded in a pink outline, preventing them from moving. The Psi Pokémon's eyes glowed a bright pink as he had a firm psychic hold on them. Without warning though, Heracross charged in, making his horn glow a bright green as it grew in size, ramming into his former ally and sending him crashing into a tree, also breaking the beyblader and his partner from their enemy's grasp.

"Her, croh!" he yelled to the others fighting against the others, trying to persuade them to stop. He was met with a volley of shuriken-like discs from the glowing wings of Pidgeot, striking him down to the ground. Just as Steelix was about to attack the requip wizard again as she lied on the earth in pain, Pinsir jumped in, having his horns glow light blue and using them to block his foe, managing to keep him at bay.

"Kur!" he roared, feeling his feet slide back slightly.

"Pinsir…" the scarlet haired woman uttered out of astonishment right before a pair of flame torrents from Houndoom and Camerupt struck him directly, knocking him down onto the ground to her shock. She then felt herself get caught within a pink outline, being from Banette, who cackled as her eyes glowed a bright pink. She and her fellow redhead were recaptured by their psychic foes, who had a firm hold on all of them.

"Gingka! Erza!" Mirajane yelled, about to jump in and help, but was suddenly caught by the same aura as it lifted her up into the air in a yelp. Her captor was Gengar, who smiled ominously as she made her cringe in pain.

"Mira!" Ash cried out upon seeing what was happening, "You're the worst!" he shouted to the subordinates with rage in his eyes.

" _They're humans…_ " Volcanion muttered, catching the attentions of those beside him, " _They think nothing of the lives of Pokémon!_ " he bellowed, gnashing his teeth together, " _Let them go or I'll blast you!_ " he threatened to their foes.

"Manectric, Electric Terrain!" Cherie commanded, enticing the Electric type to jump out.

"Steelix, use Stealth Rock!" Levi ordered, making the Iron Snake Pokémon lunge forward as well. The former of the two became covered in yellow electricity and he fire a beam from its body at the opponent. The electricity then formed into a dome-shaped cage, electrocuting both the human and the mythical creature inside.

"AAAAHHHH!" they screamed in pain.

"Ash, no!" Serena screamed. Meanwhile, the Steel/Ground type had multiple glowing rocks rise in front of his body and then stop as they turned into grey ones. They were fired towards his enemies within the electricity, landing in the ground around them.

" _How dare you…_ " the Steam Pokémon muttered angrily, taking a step forward. The stones surrounding them suddenly started to glow a bright orange, exploding underneath the three.

"AH!" they all grunted loudly from within the blast.

"Ash! Pikachu!" Gingka cried out, trying to break free of the psychic hold upon him. Magearna looked on worriedly at the sights, wondering what it could do to help them.

"If you wanna help them," the broad-shouldered man chimed in, catching its attention as it looked over at him and their enemies, "then you should come with us," he advised with a smirk.

"That way, everyone will be happy," his female partner mentioned, pointing towards the Steel/Fairy type.

" _No!_ " Volcanion bellowed, causing the Artificial Pokémon to glance over and see him slowly stand back up alongside the raven haired teen, " _Don't go, Magearna!_ " he begged, clenching his teeth together.

"Looks like I've got no choice then…" Levi responded, clicking the device once more, making the chains surrounding the creatures from afar unleash several volts of red electricity, causing them to cry out in pain. Growling out of rage, the Fire/Water type picked up his front left foot.

" _You'll pay for this!_ " he threatened, while the Omni Force beside him tried to get him to stop moving, only to end up caught in another blast from beneath them.

"WAH!" they yelled in agony.

"Stop it!" Erza commanded, clenching her teeth as she could feel the psychic grip around herself tighten. Mirajane and Gingka were in the same situation, as the former glanced back to see everyone enveloped within the electrical chains and her beloved trapped alongside the mythical creature. Beeping sadly at the sight of its friends suffering, the princess-like creation developed a serious expression upon its face, turning around and slowly trotting towards their enemies.

"Magearna!" Serena called out upon seeing it go.

"Pika…!" Pikachu gasped from within the electrical cage, catching the attentions of the ones with him as they widened their eyes to see the mechanical marvel approaching their foes, having finally succumbed to their demands.

"So now you come around?" Cherie guessed, smirking deviously.

"Use Psychic," Levi ordered to Alakazam, who had his eyes glow a bright pink before telekinetically lifting his allies into the air. At the same time, the requip mage, the beyblader, and the take-over wizard were all released from the psychic hold, falling onto the ground with grunts and breathing heavily after enduring so much pain.

" _Magearna!_ " the Steam Pokémon cried out, taking another step, leading to another explosion that enveloped him and the others, " _AH!_ " he yelped loudly in pain, completely covered by smoke. His close friend was upon the large head of Steelix as they were lifted up to the airship that had arrived, much to the shock of the rest of the group as they looked to see floating overhead, where all of the Pokémon that just opposed them, including their trainers, were being taken to. Up on one of the platforms beside the bridge, the Iron Snake Pokémon let the Steel/Fairy type slide down from his head onto it, letting it approach the figures of Rali, Alva, and Gengar.

"It's them…" Mirajane uttered in realization as her eyes shook at the sight.

"Rali… Alva…" Kimia said, narrowing her eyes onto them.

"Everything's okay!" her brother yelled down to them, grasping the railing, "All of this is for our kingdom!" he exclaimed, smiling like nothing was wrong. The counselor beside him just let off an evil smirk.

"Ergh!" the princess growled in frustration.

"That's a lie!" the take-over wizard's voice suddenly shouted, catching everyone's attention as they looked to see slowly stand up on her feet, clenching her fists tightly, "What about the Pokémon you're hurting?! What about your family?!" she asked the young royal out of anger, enveloping herself within a dark purple aura, "If you can't understand that…" she began in a deeper voice, transforming herself into her Satan Soul form, "then maybe I'll just make you!" she exclaimed, expanding out a pair of bat-like wings from her back to fly up towards the large vessel speedily. The blonde haired boy grimaced in fright, but the man beside him grinned, turning to face her approaching form.

"Gengar, Psychic," he advised calmly.

"Gar!" the alternate-colored Shadow Pokémon replied, making his eyes glow a bright pink. The demonized woman suddenly found herself stopped in midair, unable to move as she gritted her teeth in realization.

"Mira!" Erza screamed with widened eyes upon seeing her guild mate caught.

"This… is nothing!" she grunted, slowly managing to break through the telekinetic grip the Ghost/Poison type had on her.

"Hmph," the goggled man scoffed upon noticing, "Shadow Ball," he told his partner. The poltergeist creature then formed a small purple ball with dark sparks of aura in front of his mouth, shooting it down in an instant to have it strike the white haired woman in the face, enveloping her within an explosion of smoke. Everyone below was in shock, especially Ash as his eyes widened out of fright, seeing his crush plummet towards the earth.

"MIRA!" he cried out loudly, running towards the electrical cage before a blast went of beneath him and the others trapped inside. However, he managed to charge through the smoke and the prison, rushing hurriedly and leaping out to catch the falling female, who had transformed back to normal as she was saved by her beloved. They rolled across the ground before coming to a stop, with the raven haired teen holding onto her tightly as he breathed heavily, evidently scared of the thought of what could have happened.

" _Kid…_ " Volcanion uttered in disbelief, disregarding his own wounds as he noticed the new one upon the right ankle of the Pokémon trainer, likely as a result of the blast. Having witnessed the entire ordeal with surprised eyes, Rali turned to his advisor.

"Alva, I think it's okay to release them now," he told him as back below, the take-over awoke in the Omni Force member's arms, slowly sitting up with him, "Surely we can make them understand what an incredible and vital creation Magearna really is!" he mentioned excitedly.

"I suppose…" the counselor agreed, putting his cane into his left hand, "but…" he continued in an ominous tone, much to the prince's confusion, "Gengar, Mean Look!" he commanded.

"Genng…" the Shadow Pokémon responded, making irises and pupils turn purple, with a lighter purple glow around them. All of a sudden, Magearna began to glow purple, while its eyes shined a bright red, catching the blonde haired boy's attention as he gasped in surprise. A dark, shadowy mist appeared around its body as it could feel itself being forcibly turned to face its enemy. Focusing his ocular power, the Ghost/Poison type suddenly caused her chest piece to open, revealing the core with the heart-shaped mark. Chuckling evilly, the bearded man reached out in an attempt to take it as beeps emanated from the Artificial Pokémon.

"Wait!" the royal with him cried out, getting in between the two before he could take the device, stretching out his arms in a defensive manner, "You don't have to remove its Soul-Heart!" he pointed out in a desperate sounding tone, "That's just as long as Magearna becomes a sphere!" he added, not noticing Levi approaching them, "Nikola said that- AH!" he yelped, interjecting his own remark as he was grasped and hoisted away by the broad shouldered man.

"All that I really need is its Soul-Heart…" the goggled man responded, stepping forward and grasping the core of the Steel/Fairy type.

"You can't!" Rali screamed, trying to squirm his way free from the arms of the tan skinned male, "If you remove it, then…!" he tried to say, but was unable to as the man twisted the sphere-shaped device, taking it out of the princess-like being's body. He laughed in success as he held the object in his extremity, while the mechanical marvel he took it from had its eyes go dark as it stopped beeping. Everyone down below wondered what had conspired, trotting over the area beside the prison Volcanion and Pikachu were still in, glancing up at the departing airship. "Alva… what did you just…?" the prince tried to ask, evidently afraid to find out from his advisor.

"It's dead," he stated coldly, causing him to gasp in shock as his pupils shrank, "Gengar, kindly return Magearna," he told his partner. The poltergeist creature chuckled evilly, telekinetically hoisting the lifeless Pokémon up before tossing it over the railing, letting it plummet down to the ground, much to the horror of the others below.

" _Ergh…_ " the Fire/Water type growled, trying to ram through the barrier of electricity himself, only to fail and be caught up in another explosion, " _GOH!_ " he yelled in pain.

"Kimia…" Alva began to the princess, catching her attention along with the others, "your presence is not required for my plan," he noted, "Farewell," he said, while the vessel continued to float away, "Use Hyper Beam," he ordered. Several of his ally Pokémon at the stern of the ship charged up balls of purple-black energy in front of their mouths, unleashing rays of the same light toward their enemies on the ground. They came together to form one gigantic beam, about to strike just as Erza ran up in front of the group. In a mere instant, a large explosion occurred, enveloping most of the plateau in a cloud of black smoke, much to the horror of Rali as his eyes trembled.

"How could you lie to me?!" he questioned angrily to his so-called advisor, still squirming around in Levi's arms, "It wasn't for the kingdom!" he realized.

"Yes," he responded, turning to face the royal, "it _was_ all done for the glory of the kingdom of Azoth," he stated with a bow, "My ideal one of course…" he mentioned as he grinned sinisterly, causing the prince to widen his eyes, "Gengar, Hypnosis," he said to the Shadow Pokémon.

"Geng… gar…" he replied, making his eyes glow an ominous purple as he looked directly into those of the blonde haired boy. They shined a bright blue as he gnashed his teeth together, suddenly succumbing to drowsiness as he fell asleep, letting his head drop. Team Rocket had witnessed the entire ordeal from the bridge of the vessel, stunned by how cruel and diabolical the counselor's methods were as they departed the area. A giant crater that had smoke billowing out from it was gathered around by the Pokémon; most of whom had escaped the electrical chain prison. When the veil finally subsided, it revealed the entire group being protected by a large, turquoise force field, which was made possible thanks to the groups of Altaria and Wormadam. The requip user had also assisted by donning her Adamantine armor, unlatching her arm shields as a serious countenance spread across her face.

"They used Dig and Safeguard!" Clemont realized as the makeshift barriers went down.

"Thank goodness…" Gingka uttered in relief, but then turned to Ash, gasping as he saw him limping over with Mirajane, appearing to be gritting his teeth out of pain.

" _Thank you, everyone,_ " Volcanion told his friends in gratitude.

"Hip pow!" Hippowdon responded with a simple nod, followed by seeing the mythical creature immediately rush out of the crater, enticing the humans to follow him.

" _MAGEARNA!_ " he cried out, hurriedly running over to where its body had landed. He stopped upon approaching it, gasping lightly as he saw that its eyes no longer glowed along with the disappearance of its core. Everyone else arrived and yelped in horror to see what had happened, noticing the several marks of dirt and grime across the machine's form.

"We… were too late…" Erza uttered in realization, requipping back into her Heart Kreuz attire before glancing down ashamedly. The beyblader and the take-over wizard had the same sentiments of grief, but the latter was more upset, especially as she saw that her beloved's right leg with dripping with blood. The Steam Pokémon merely unlatched his arms, using them to pick up the creation and place it onto his back carefully. He then walked away from the others, while they watched on in disbelief.

"Volcanion…" the raven haired teen said, hoping that he would be okay. He tried to go after him, but suddenly felt a singing pain in his leg, causing him to cringe and keel over onto his left knee.

"Ash, are you all right?!" Bonnie asked worriedly as the whole group went over to his side. His Omni Force teammate took notice of the blood dripping out from his right pant leg, going over and lifting it up for him. Everyone widened their eyes to see the large scrape that had been left from the blast he had taken when escaping the electrical cage earlier.

"Serena, get him some bandages," the shaggy haired teen advised to the performer, catching her attention.

"Right!" she replied immediately, rushing off to get her bag.

"You're gonna be okay, Ash," Gingka promised to his friend, who shifted his expression into a deep frown as the brim of his cap covered his eyes from view.

"It's not me you should be worried about…" he muttered in response, much to his surprise as he looked over at the mythical creature, seeing sticking his arms into the water of the lake. The nozzles at the end of them opened up, absorbing the liquid into them. Everyone watched on in concern, wondering what they were to do now.

"If her Soul-Heart is returned," Clemont began, getting everyone's attention, while Squishy came out of its pouch to nuzzle his sister's cheek, "Magearna should be revived," he stated to them, leading to several nods from the rest of the group.

"Then let's go!" the Pokémon trainer yelled with a pump of his right fist.

"You sure you're gonna be okay, Ash?" Mirajane asked him out of concern, "I mean, you-" Her remark was halted at the moment she saw him stomp his right foot against the ground, with no blood dripping from his leg as it sparked with electricity.

"I'm fine," he reassured as he smiled confidently, making the others do the same. All of a sudden, they felt the wind stir up near them, enticing them to look out and see the red hovercraft floating over the body of water, with Kimia piloting it.

" _Everyone onboard!_ " she advised through the speakers of the ship's communications. Elsewhere, Alva's airship was making steady progress in its return to the Azoth Kingdom, flying over the tree-filled valleys. Levi and Cherie were piloting it from within, while their boss and the prince sat behind them with their Pokémon, as Team Rocket looked at them from the side.

"Prince Rali… I thought that you would be able to understand…" the counselor noted out of mild frustration, still holding the object of power in his right hand, "That you would be able to comprehend my noblest of dreams…" he mentioned, "There's no reason to make such a _big_ fuss," he pointed out as the royal was asleep beside him, "We're only talking about _one_ Pokémon…" he finished, looking back at the core. Jessie, James, and Meowth were horrified at the thought of what he was planning to do by accomplishing all that he did. The latter of the three had his eyes tremble at the sight of the Soul-Heart, but then suddenly heard a voice emanate from it, causing him to gasp in shock.

"It's… Magearna!" he exclaimed.

"Huh?" his human partners uttered in confusion.

"I can sense her right from here!" the Scratch Cat Pokémon replied with his eyes close to drawing tears, "Poor Magearna… She's cryin'!" he told them in a saddened tone.

"In that case…" the lavender haired man began, clenching his fists, "it's retrieve the Soul-Heart or bust!" he advised, getting nods in agreement from the rest of his friends before lunging out at the bearded man.

"Gengar, Psychic," he told his partner, who had his eyes shine in a bright pink light to capture the trio in midair just as they were about to grab their target, "You're even less than useless to me…" the goggled man pointed out, gesturing for the Shadow Pokémon to throw them out the door as they yelped. However, only the uniformed humans of the two were sent away as the access to the bridge was shut on the Normal type, much to their surprise as they plummeted towards the earth.

"MEOWWWWTHHH!" they screamed while falling into the trees. Meanwhile, the hovercraft had finally taken off from the plateau, expanding its wings and leaving the native creatures behind. It flew over the large field of pink, white, and red flowers, catching Volcanion's eye as he spotted it.

" _That field of flowers…_ " he uttered, getting the attentions of the others as the body of the Artificial Pokémon was tied to his back by a rope, " _That's where I met Magearna for the very first time…_ " he told them.

"Wasn't that five hundred years ago?" Kimia questioned from the cockpit, turning her head slightly to listen.

" _I don't know how you humans measure time,_ " he responded with a blink of his eyes, " _but it's a story from the ancient past…_ " he said while glancing up at the sky, remembering the moment he had become acquainted with the Steel/Fairy type, when he had picked it up after it had fallen into the flower field, still donning its bright colors, " _Then, as now, the plateau was my home and many, many other troubled Pokémon's,_ " he continued to tell, " _Often times I would check the area for Pokémon that were collapsed from exhaustion,_ " he explained, recalling how the princess-like being had bowed to him before showing him a bouquet of beautiful flowers; the pollen of which caused him to sneeze out a burst of steam. When it had dissipated, he was surprised to find that the mechanical marvel was unharmed and not bothered by the blast, having shielded itself in its ball-like form. " _Magearna was the first one I met that wasn't blown away or bothered by my explosions,_ " he mentioned, " _She liked to take care of others,_ " he added, remembering how she helped out the Pokémon living on the plateau, making them feel at home, " _It seems that even within the kingdom, she was always caring for other Pokémon,_ " he finished, " _I swear that I'll save Magearna,_ " he promised afterwards, " _For both her sake and for the sake of everyone living on the plateau,_ " he stated, making everyone else nod in agreement.

"Pika!" Pikachu concurred. Within the forest below them, Jessie and James groaned as they lied in pain upon a tree branch. All of a sudden, they something from above buzzing.

"Huh?" they uttered simultaneously in confusion, looking up to see the red hovercraft flying overhead.

"They're still kicking, too!" the male of the duo noted, reaching down to his belt and pulling out a grappling hook, which he consequently fired to have it fasten onto a railing of the ship.

"Lift off!" both he and his female partner exclaimed as they were hoisted away together, letting leaves rush through the wind. On the vessel itself, a holographic screen came upon Kimia's armband, revealing her advisor.

"What is it, Flamel?" she asked her.

" _Princess, I have something to report,_ " she replied through the transmission, typing on keys back in a study of the castle, "This previously unseen design diagram by Nikola was found in prince Rali's room," she told her, making the blueprint appear on both her monitor and the screen of the royal's.

" _A design diagram?_ " she asked, with Ash, Clemont, and Gingka moving into the camera view to get a closer look. Meanwhile, the large airship had already arrived back at the kingdom, docking down on the loading platform.

"Nikola designed a number of machines for defending the kingdom," Alva pointed out, "The strongest of them being the wall that presently surrounds it…" he mentioned in an ominous tone, looking over at the moss-covered barrier made primarily of stone.

" _Part of the wall of the Azoth Kingdom can separate and turn into a floating fortress,_ " the glasses-wearing woman communicated to her superior, having shown her a simulation of what the machine would do, shocking them, " _It was designed as protection in times of an emergency,_ " she noted to them, as everyone listened in, " _However, an uprising broke over just who would claim that power,_ " she told them, much to their surprise as their eyes widened slightly.

"It's like Phantom Lord's Giant…" Erza realized, narrowing her eyes onto the mechanism.

"That probably means it has weapons like the Jupiter Cannon," Mirajane added with a slight grimace.

"To stop the fighting, Nikola sealed the fortress so that it wasn't able to move," the counselor explained while within the wall itself along with his subordinates, the prince, and Meowth, who was tied to a railing, "Sealed within the darkness of history, along with Magearna…" he muttered, approaching the wheel-shaped device at the center of the room, which moved itself closer to him.

"Sealed it?" the Scratch Cat Pokémon responded in confusion, "Whaddaya mean sealed?" he asked, suddenly seeing monitors turn on, "Heh?" he uttered worriedly, wondering what was about to happen.

"Five hundred years ago, Magearna was not simply the princess' playmate," Alva replied as he walked over to the device, "It had another role… to defend the princess as well as defend the kingdom," he told him, "How was it done?" he questioned rhetorically, "Using this…" he said, fitting the Soul-Heart into the mechanism, which clamped down on it, causing it to glow a bright red. The system then moved back into place with it, as the wheels rotated and spun rapidly. "Its power has been sealed off," the bearded man began, "but by using neo arcane science," he continued ominously, "it will finally be reawakened!" he declared, just as the device unleashed a burst of energy that reverberated throughout the area. Lights turned on and wheels began spinning as the entire mechanism had been reactivated, with its power now restored. Dust billowed from the wall before it began rising up from the ground, making flocks of Starly hurriedly fly away. Parts of the wall shifted as the gears spun, putting the fortress together into its complete form, with leftover stone and rock falling to the earth. Below, everyone gasped in horror at the sight of the weapon, seeing it float overhead. As they were approaching the kingdom, the group upon the red hovercraft spotted the mechanism in the distance.

"Is that…?!" Ash started to ask as the wind rushed through his hair.

"It's Nikola's… floating fortress!" Clemont exclaimed as he saw it.

"And to move it…" Kimia began to realize angrily, gripping the throttle tightly, "they required the Soul Heart!" she said, gnashing her teeth together.

"Okay, I'm pissed," Gingka bluntly uttered, readying a Poké Ball in his right hand, pressing its center button to enlarge it, "Let it rip, Scizor!" he cried out while throwing it up. It popped open, and the light that poured out from it went onto the floor of the ship's standing area, coming into form and dissipating to reveal the Pincer Pokémon.

"Zor!" he buzzed loudly upon appearing, snapping his claws.

"Let's get this done," his trainer declared, tapping the Key Stone upon his left glove. The streaks of golden light that emanated from it connected with the greyish ones from his partner's Scizorite, becoming a bright white before letting off a flash. In a multicolored aura as he roared, the Bug/Steel type's pincers lengthened and developed serrations, while the lower half of his claws turned white and gained three pointed spikes on the underside. His eyespots were now becoming blue with a thin black rim. In addition, pieces of black armoring appeared on various areas of his body: a three-pointed crest on his forehead, striated coverings on his shoulders, and unmarked coverings on his thighs. His legs now resembled large, tapered spikes with white tips. A burst of wind came upon the finishing of his transformation as he shouted into the air.

"Agreed," Erza concurred, summoning forth a pair of swords into her hands, "We'll take down that fortress and get Magearna back," she stated with confidence. Her female guild mate nodded in agreement, morphing into her Satan Soul form in a bright flash of purple light. Ash kept his fists clenched, prepared to go into battle with the others to save their friend.

 **END**

 **Looks like we're getting right into the finale. Remember, there'll be an epilogue once the story's completed, so don't go anywhere!**

 **So how will Ash and the others get out of this one?! In the meantime, back to our scenario story!**

 **SCENARIO**

 **Tommy Oliver: Saba, show them what you got! HA! *holds it upside down for it to fire lasers***

 **Ash Ketchum: Pikachu, Electro Ball!**

 **Pikachu: Chu… PIKA! *fires Electro Ball, which stops lasers and heads towards Tommy***

 **Tommy Oliver: *blocks the ball with Saba and slices it* Nice try.**

 **Ash Ketchum: *gnashes teeth in frustration* Greninja, Water Shuriken!**

 **Greninja: Neen! *throws Water Shuriken***

 **Tommy Oliver: *jumps and shoots another laser at the shuriken* Hope you got a lot more attacks. Because I got plenty.**

 **Ash Ketchum: Ergh…**

 **Nightwing: Agh! *slides but stands still before taking his mask off***

 **Erza Scarlet: This is it! *attempts to slash him with her sword***

 **Nightwing: *blocks sword with the staff* How much weapons can you even carry?**

 **Erza Scarlet: More than you know… *reels back her left arm for a punch***

 **Nightwing: *avoids contact and flips before kicking Erza***

 **Erza Scarlet: GAH! *stumbles back before glaring out angrily at Nightwing, lunging at him once more***

 **Mirajane Strauss: Take this! *tries to punch Raiden***

 **Raiden: *laughs and grabs Mira's wrist* You're strong… I can give you that. But I'm just getting started.**

 **Mirajane Strauss: *grimaces in realization* Uh oh…**

 **Raiden: *kicks her up high and jumps* Here comes Jack! *slashes her with Murasama before having it in his foot and sends her down with another slash***

 **Mirajane Strauss: AGH! *falls onto the ground***

 **Gingka Hagane: Mira! That's not a good sign…**

 **Spirit Reaper: Looks like Raiden's Ripper Mode is getting ahead.**

 **Gingka Hagane: What?!**

 **Spirit Reaper: Never mind that. Raiden is capable of controlling his dark personality. He'll only use enough to bypass Mira's power and nothing more. *spins scythe***

 **Gingka Hagane: How can you be sure?! *swings sword at him***

 **Spirit Reaper: *dodges and flies at Gingka before punching him***

 **Gingka Hagane: Ugh! *stumbles slightly before getting back into a ready stance* Wind Style: Tornado Pierce! *shoots tornado out from his sword***

 **Spirit Reaper: Ergh! *claps the tornado away while taking damage***

 **Gingka Hagane: Tch… Looks like this won't be easy…**

 **Nightwing: *throws another set of wing-dings at Erza***

 **Erza Scarlet: *slashes through them and races by Nightwing, swinging her swords out* Pentagram Sword!**

 **Nightwing: Ergh! *falls hard and couldn't get up* Looks like you win this one.**

 **Erza Scarlet: *smiles***

 **Mirajane Strauss: RRRAAAAGGGH! *strikes Raiden in the back of the head with her elbow***

 **Raiden: Ugh! *lands on both hands and flips* Alright. It's time to finish this.**

 **Mirajane Strauss: *attempts to kick him***

 **Raiden: *dodges and elbows Mira in the back* We're done! *uses Zandatsu and slashes her***

 **Mirajane Strauss: *transforms back to normal and hits the ground hard* Ergh… What did you… do to me?!**

 **Raiden: *looks at her* Relax, that's all I can do. If I wasn't in control of who I really am, you wouldn't forgive me... it's only nature... running its course...**

 **Ash Ketchum: Water Shuriken!**

 **Greninja: Neen ja! *tosses Water Shuriken, which strikes Tommy***

 **Tommy Oliver: Gah! *falls but goes back up* Still felt the hits when being in both Green and Black Ranger.**

 **Ash Ketchum: *charges towards him* Now it's my turn!**

 **Tommy Oliver: *flips over and punches Ash before kicking him down***

 **Ash Ketchum: Ergh! *has electricity build up around him* Not yet! *strikes Tommy in the face with his fist immersed in electricity***

 **Tommy Oliver: Agh! *falls feeling the static and powers down* I don't think the Morphing Grid would recover for now.**

 **Ash Ketchum: Yeah!**

 **Gingka Hagane: Tornado Slice! *slashes Spirit***

 **Spirit Reaper: Gah! *flies to avoid falling and teleported to Gingka* HADOKEN! *throws the fireball at him***

 **Gingka Hagane: *blocks it with his sword* Ergh!**

 **Spirit Reaper: *teleports and powers up* SHORYUKEN! *finishes him with the uppercut***

 **Gingka Hagane: *falls to the ground* Ugh…**

 **Spirit Reaper: Now that it's done, I gotta join Raiden. *teleports to the others***

 **Raiden: About time you showed up. I already noticed that Tommy and Nightwing lost shots as well.**

 **Erza Scarlet: You may be powerful, Raiden. But as you've already witnessed, me and Ash are a force to be reckoned with.**

 **Ash Ketchum: Yeah! *clenches his fists tightly***

 **Spirit Reaper: *smirks* Wanna bet?**

 **Raiden: Wait! *puts Murasama in front of Spirit* Something's not right. *sees the ground shaking* Oh you've got to be kidding me… *uses Ninja Run***

 **Ash Ketchum: Wh-What's happening?**

 **Pikachu: Pika?**

 **Spirit Reaper: Oh no... *flies up high to see a giant multi-leg machine coming from the ground* This again?**

 **Erza Scarlet: What is that thing?!**

 **Raiden: It's a Metal Gear Excelsus. Don't take it lightly. And I've dealt with Metal Gears including this. And I'm gonna finish this one again. *grips on Murasama***

 **Erza Scarlet: *requips into her Clear Heart clothing* Then let us help you.**

 **Ash Ketchum: We can do just as much as you guys!**

 **Pikachu: Pika!**

 **Greninja: Gren!**

 **END SCENARIO**

 **Stay tuned, everyone!**

 **QUOTE**

 _ **Like I would just stay home when my best friend's feeling blue.**_

 **Gingka Hagane**

 **To Ash in XYZ finale**


	6. PART IV

**Well everyone, it now comes down to the final part of our feature adaptation. Keep in mind that there'll be an epilogue to explain some things after this, including the inevitable drama that's to come between Ash and Mirajane over the truth about Fairy Tail.**

 **But for now, let's wrap this monster of a story up!**

 **VOLCANION & THE MECHANICAL MARVEL**

Within the floating fortress, the large monitor showed everyone the incoming hovercraft floating towards them with their enemies onboard.

"Still here, princess?" Alva inquired upon seeing the vessel and the people aboard it, "I see…" he muttered with a smirk, waving his right hand over the console to activate the holographic touch screen, "Very well!" he said, setting up the mechanism's targeting system, "After five hundred years, I know what my fortress' first prey shall be," he declared ominously, "The princess!" he exclaimed.

"AH!" Meowth gasped in fright with widened eyes, also noticing his two comrades dangling from the ship with their grappling hook.

"Jess… James…" he uttered worriedly, trembling in fear. Meanwhile, the Soul-Heart suddenly shot a large beam of light downwards, which in turn caused more rock to collapse off of the castle-like device, revealing the giant cannon at the bottom of it, charging loudly with electricity.

"So there _is_ a weapon…" Erza said in realization, gritting her teeth tightly before enveloping herself in a bright golden light. When it dissipated, it revealed her wearing an armor that was black in color, sporting some silver trimming. A distinctive feature of the armor was its pair of wings, which were reminiscent of those of a dragon or a bat. Around her neck was a neck guard decorated by several gems, and her long scarlet hair was tied up in a high ponytail, with two bangs framing her face. Her large shoulder pads, each composed of two silver-edged plates one over the other, sported silver crosses on them, too, and flanked the high collar, which had a reminiscent shape of a dress. The silver-edged breastplate revealed a fair amount of her cleavage and belly, with plates flanking her hips and reaching down to her very large waist guard, composed of very long, silver-edged plates shaped like feathers and decorated by silver crosses. The waist guard left the front of her body exposed, with her groin being covered by a dark purple indument. The slim gauntlets she had come equipped with gave her prominent protection for her hands, each sporting silver patterns. On top of that, the plates guarding her legs were sliver-edged on her thighs and knees, but pitch black dark on her metal greaves. At the same time, Ash tossed up four enlarged Poké Balls, which all popped open. The light from them came into form, revealing Hawlucha, Talonflame, Noivern, and Greninja, as the latter of the group landed onto the back of the Dragon/Flying type.

"Flaaayyme!" the Scorching Pokémon squawked as he glided near the aircraft, allowing for Pikachu to jump onto him.

"You can do it, Pikachu!" his trainer told him confidently as he pumped his fist.

"Pika, pika!" he responded before they headed off.

"Let's get going," the raven haired teen advised to his friends.

"Right!" they all voiced in agreement, just as both Erza and Mirajane took off and flew after the creatures.

" _Hm,_ " Volcanion concurred, definitely the most prepared to save the life force of his dear friend. Back within the fortress as the cannon continued charging with energy, Alva chuckled evilly as the weapon was locked onto its target.

"Now fire!" he ordered, closing his hand into a fist. However, the large screen started to contort with static, catching his attention. "Huh?" he uttered in confusion, "I said fire!" he commanded angrily, wondering what was wrong. The cannon itself had its energy fluctuate and contort in the same manner, causing the Satan Soul user and the requip mage to widen their eyes in surprise.

"What's happening?" the latter of the two questioned, continuing to fly onwards.

"I'm not sure…" the former began to reply, "but this gives us an opening!" she noted, quickly soaring upwards with her to follow. Within the structure itself, the core's beam of light shrunk until it disappeared completely. Meowth looked on in awe, having sensed something from the Soul-Heart itself.

"She's sufferin'… Magearna's sufferin'…" he repeated with trembling eyes, seeing the device's color switch between black and white upon each rotation of the wheels spinning around it. The being's memory flowed back, as it envisioned her past in a flame.

 **FLASHBACK**

 _The Azoth Kingdom was in ruins as both Nikola and the Steel/Fairy type looked on from their high vantage point, seeing most of the city engulfed in flames. The former had wounds across his body from the turmoil, evidently stunned by all that was conspiring._

" _This power was purposefully created to make all of the people in the kingdom happy," he explained, "But all it did was incite war and hatred," he noted, seeing people tending to those who were hurt, "Our citizens are wounded…" he pointed out, letting a tear fall from his eye. Out of worry, the Artificial Pokémon held onto his right arm, beeping to get his attention. He closed his eyes for a moment before kneeling down to the princess-like being, placing his hands onto its shoulders, "Magearna," he began, "I'm afraid I have no choice but to hide you away, so that the people won't be able to find you," he told it, "I did my best…" he added sincerely, clenching his teeth together, "I'm sorry…" he apologized while trembling, much to its confusion as it blinked._

 **END FLASHBACK**

The large screen still continued to contort thanks to the efforts of the mechanical marvel's spirit, preventing the weapon from working.

"Magearna's still in there!" the Normal type suddenly screamed, with tears pouring out from his eyes as he squirmed wildly, "She's sayin' she doesn't wanna do this!" he wailed, "She's sufferin'!" he mentioned, making Alva develop a frown upon his face, narrowing his eyes onto the Soul-Heart.

"Magearna…" he muttered angrily, "So a piece of your heart is still remaining, hm?" he guessed, letting of a sinister grin.

 **PART IV**

Outside, several Poké Balls were tossed up into the air as they all popped up, spilling light upon the grassy earth of the fortress' exterior. Manectric, Beedrill, Tyranitar, Swampert, Salamence, Camerupt, Pidgeot, Sharpedo, Sableye, Houndoom, Glalie, Banette, Alakazam, Aggron, and Steelix all appeared into form, letting out their respective cries as they were summoned forth by Levi and Cherie, whom were spotted by the Fairy Tail females from afar.

"Uh oh," Mirajane uttered in realization, having an idea of what was to come next.

"Mega Wave!" the two subordinates at the castle exclaimed, waving their fingers over their bracelets, causing a holographic sphere with the same curved shape as their stones inside to suddenly appear over their jewelry. The same kind of illusion showed up over all of the Pokémon as well, making them grimace in agonizing. Their trainers stuck their arms out, making several streaks of the dark energy go to them, suddenly surrounding them all within a swirling veil.

"Here it comes…" Erza muttered as she tightened the grip around her swords. When the dark energy dissipated around the creatures they were going up against, they had changed drastically. Both the Face Pokémon and the Psychic type obtained their powered-up forms from before. The Dragon Pokémon had her wings melded together into a single huge, crescent-shaped wing. Her face, neck, body and tail were narrower, and her tail was noticeably shorter in length. The ridges above her eyes were now far less prominent, and she no longer possessed the thick, gray scaling over her lower jaw. Instead, the smooth red flesh underneath had been left exposed, increasing her streamline appearance. The upper pair of fins resting on the sides of her head were now elongated and tapered. The lower pair had not changed much. However, the middle set now took the form of quarter-arches, spanning towards the bridge of the nose. The remnants of her shelled underbelly had been drastically transformed into a segmented, more aerodynamic, vest-like armored frame. Her front forelegs were tucked into the frame, as its pieces were interlocked, encasing the chest and shoulders.

The Fire/Ground type's humps on his back transformed into one large and very active volcano. His fur had expanded and grew to a point where only his hooves could be seen, and his ears and the tufts on his head had grown thicker and longer, standing on end. He gained a grey M on the front of his face and lost the three blue rings on his body.

Manectric had become considerably larger, with the center spike on his head shifted, and now was formed into a large, tilted growth that extended over his snout and had a point on either end. The remaining two head spikes were thinner, longer, and had small, pointed bulbs in place of the earholes. His mane was now extended down the length of his body, forming four additional spikes. One of those spikes extended down past his chest and had points on both ends. The tufts of fur on his haunches were now blue and formed more numerous, thinner points. While he retained the yellow tufts around his front feet, they now had two short spikes extending backward. Finally, he lacked the sharply angled tail of his previous state and now had red claws.

The antennae on Beedrill's head became shorter and now extended forward and back over his face. His eyes had become longer and sleeker, he now had three pairs of wings; the uppermost pair was the largest with a black trim along the top. His stingers become longer and larger, resembling javelins. His legs were no longer insectoid-like, and instead resembled conical, black-and-yellow stingers with white tips. His abdomen became larger and grooved, and it was attached to his thorax by a black structure. A similar black structure connected his head and thorax. The stinger on his abdomen was now a pale yellow, and he now had black stripes over his entire body.

Banette gained several additional zippers: one running diagonally across her face, one on each hand and another on her body. The first zipper ran from her left eye to the tip of her central spike. The other three were all unzipped, revealing parts of her purple body within. Her three long purple fingers and body were revealed, along with two pointed, purple legs that were visible. Her zigzagging ribbon became somewhat erect, and now had two zipper rings around it and a short zipper on the tip. She gained four further spikes: one on the top and bottom of each hand and one on each hip. However, she had lost her brush-like tail.

Aggron was now bulkier and more heavily plated than his previous state. The horns on his forehead were now shorter, and he had a third, wider horn on his nose. A spike projected downward from both his upper and lower jaw. The protrusions on his shoulders were longer and curved toward his head, and new spikes thrusted from the holes in his armbands. His own tail was now thicker with two bands around it.

Pidgeot's wings had become broader as an elaborate crest was formed upon her head. The tips of her wings and tail feathers were now blue, and her body had become a white color. Her eyes had turned red with white pupils while glowing purple, and she gained a streamer-like red plume, extending from a mane of yellow feathers. A red feather projected from the front of her crest while there was a single red highlight on the left side of the mane.

Tyranitar had more gaps in his armor than his normal form, with four new triangular holes along the sides of his neck and one on his throat. The four on his chest were now larger with the top two containing red ovals. While the spikes along the back of his neck grow shorter, the ones on his head elongated to form prominent ridges along his brows. The center spike on his head became a long, upright horn. His chest plate expanded, curving over his shoulders and along his back to form three long, irregular spikes on each side of his body. The scales on his belly has now become red instead of blue and seethed with energy. He gained two sharp spikes on his knees, as well as more prominent leg joints. His tail lengthened, with the three spikes surrounding his tip having grown upward and outward.

Houndoom had the ridges upon his back thicken, and he gained additional, bone-like rings around the base of his tail. The rings on his tail had small spikes on top, causing them to resemble vertebrae. The ridge at the base of his neck was longer and curved forward towards his shoulders. Instead of a band with a skull pendant, there was a large, toothed structure around his neck. This bone-like formation had two large spikes on either side and three pointed teeth on the bottom. His horns now pointed straight up with a small, outward curve in the middle. The two bands on his hind legs had vanished, and those on his forelegs were broken in the front. His claws were now a dark red, and the tip of his tail was now split down the middle.

Swampert gained considerable bulk. His upper body and arms were more muscular, while his lower body was smaller in comparison. The raised patches above his feet had vanished, but he gained two additional ones on each wrist and one on each shoulder. The bumps and his gills became a darker, redder shade of orange, and the gills were now larger and extended slightly past his mouth. The black fins on his head were shorter, more streamlined, and extended down past his shoulders. The tail fin now formed a short ridge that extended up to his forehead. His fingers and toes were more defined, and his fingers themselves turned black.

Sableye had a gigantic red jewel appear from out of his chest, leaving a small hole as he held it in his hands. His ears elongated, and he gained a spike on the top of his head. His teeth had turned from white to yellow, and his eyes also changed from pale blue to a crimson red, with diagonal slits at their inner edges.

Sharpedo altered his appearance as well, as the fangs in his mouth transformed and had horns sprouting out from his nose. Yellow patterns also appeared across his body, resembling battle scars.

Lastly, Steelix's body became longer, almost double his mass, and gained more features. His eyes turn blue amidst their purple glow and his lower jaw became more heavily armored with a round, curved shape. Additionally, a third pair of ridges appeared on his bottom jaw, as well as two sharp, flat structures comprised of three conjoined projections on each side. The gray, rock-like spikes and his tail point had transformed into prism-like crystalline spikes; the segments from which the spikes protrude were much larger as well. In between the head and individual spiked segments were smaller units, now adorned by a black spot with a blue hexagon on each side. Several metallic-looking scraps were constantly rotated around his neck.

Each of the Mega Evolved Pokémon let out their respective battle cries, prepared to go into battle against their oncoming foes.

"Mira, let's close in!" Erza advised, speeding ahead.

"Right!" the take-over wizard agreed as she followed her.

"Pika…" Pikachu uttered in realization, "Pi kachu!" he cried out to his allies, who all responded with nods of agreement as they pressed onward.

"Kazaamm!" Alakazam bellowed, letting his eyes glow a bright pink as he floated in a meditative stance, making his comrades float within a pink outline. Sharpedo attacked first, causing the group to split up as Talonflame span to the right, avoiding the attempt. As they passed by the stone structures up to the base, they were met by Swampert, who had his right fist clenched, expelling water from the patches to propel a punch towards them. They dodged that however, still flying ahead and avoiding an air swipe from Pidgeot. Soon they found Glalie and the shark-like creature coming toward them, but they were stopped thanks to a couple of lightning bolts shot from the Mouse Pokémon.

"Watch out!" the Satan Soul user exclaimed, flying beside Noivern and Greninja and extending her left arm out towards Steelix. From a magical seal that appeared before her extremity, she shot out several dark tendrils that began wrapping around him, making him squirm wildly.

"Gren?" the Water/Dark type croaked in surprise upon seeing Beedrill zooming at them with all of his stingers glowing purple, about to attack him, "Nin!" he yelped as he jumped off of his flying teammate, landing safely upon the ground, "Nin ja…" he grumbled, having to consequently avoid an array of purple-black beams of light being shot out of Salamence's mouth. He skillfully avoided each of them as he ran up to her, forming a pair of shining blue, kunai-like blades in his hands. Hopping up into her face, he quickly slashed at her a couple of times, taking off before Camerupt could try to attack him. The Mega Evolved Eruption Pokémon was prepared to counter for his ally, but then suddenly found himself as the target of a powerful sound wave, making him grimace before he was caught in an explosion of smoke.

"Vurrnn!" the wyvern-like creature bellowed as he flew through the veil. Tyranitar spotted him and stamped his right foot against the ground, causing it to glow light purple in front of him. Rock-shaped balls of aura rose into the air from the shining earth, having purple dust falling from each of them before their glow vanished. With a mighty roar, he shot all of them towards the enemy Dragon/Flying type, who quickly span away.

"HAH!" Erza yelled as she slashed through the stones with her swords, heading straight for the Mega Evolved Armor Pokémon as she clenched the hilts tightly, "Moon Flash!" she screamed, slicing by him in a cross-shaped pattern. An explosion of dust then occurred as the creature cried out in agony, followed by the requip user looking over to see Levi and Cherie watching from afar, smirking at the sight of the battle. "You think this is a game?!" she questioned angrily, about to fly up to them. All of a sudden though, she found herself instantly halted, shrouded within a bright pink outline.

"Ala…" Alakazam's eerie voice chimed in, catching her attention as she looked to see that she was being bound by his psychic grasp.

"It's a game we've already won, girlie!" the broad shouldered man yelled with an evil chuckle, "The Soul-Heart's ours, and we've got Mega Evolution on our side!" he pointed out.

"There's no hope of you winning at this point," the beret wearing woman added, "Just give it up," she advised, waving her hand.

"Like hell we will!" the scarlet haired woman roared in response, "All these Pokémon you're hurting to make them more powerful…" she began, trembling in place as she tightened the grip she had on her weapons, "all the people you're scaring by obtaining this monstrosity…" she continued as she managed to take a step forward, much to their shock, "WE'LL NEVER GIVE UP WHEN THEY'RE COUNTING ON US!" she bellowed loudly. All of a sudden, a glint of light shined from the sky, catching the attention of the Psychic type too late as he saw Pinsir diving in for a split second before being struck by a beam of purple-black light that came from him.

"Kah!" he called out, landing upon the ground before the S-class wizard, who looked on in awe as the outline around her form vanished.

"Pinsir…" she uttered, absolutely stunned by his heroic action. However, the smoke cleared to reveal the Mega Evolved Psi Pokémon still floating in midair, about to bind both of his foes in his telekinetic grasp once more.

"Her, cro!" another familiar voice buzzed as Heracross flew in, having his horn grow within a bright green light, directly striking him in the side, causing him to tumble across the earth until he slammed into a stone wall in a cloud of dust.

"Alakazam!" Levi yelled out of astonishment. When the dust cleared, it revealed the spoon-wielding creature lying on the ground in his original form, groaning in pain.

"Croh!" Heracross exclaimed to his partner, who nodded before turning to Erza.

"You're right," she concurred with a small grin, letting a golden light envelop her form, "We'll save Magearna and your friends," she declared in a confident tone. The two subordinates from afar just gritted their teeth angrily at the sight of one of their transformed Pokémon being defeated, but they then spotted a few figures flying in from the distance. One of them was Scizor, who had pincers glow a light blue as he soared down and rapidly punched Pidgeot aside before attacking Banette. Another was Bisharp, as he landed down and extended the blades on his forearms, rushing forward and slashing past Salamence as they shined in a bright purple luminosity.

"Ergh…!" Mirajane grunted, struggling to keep her hold on Steelix as he was beginning to break through the tendrils that surrounded his form. Without warning though, something slammed into his head, making him grunt as it pushed him back. It turned out to be Samurai Pegasus, who consequently knocked the Mega Evolved Iron Snake Pokémon onto the ground, landing back down itself before zooming off to assist its allies.

"Pi ka…" Pikachu began with electricity sparking from his cheeks as he jumped off of Talonflame, landing onto the ground while being surrounding by Glalie, Tyranitar, Aggron, and Houndoom, "CHUUUU!" he screeched, unleashing a powerful blast of electricity onto all of them. Watching from afar, Camerupt had his mouth billow with flames, about to attack until he took a punch directly to the face from the take-over wizard, sending him tumbling away. Just as Steelix got himself back up again, he noticed a figure closing in from the distance, being Volcanion as he was firing steam out of his arms to propel himself towards them.

" _RRRAAAHHH!_ " he roared, slamming right into the morphed Steel/Ground type's head, knocking him down once more, while he span out to the earth below.

"Haw, lucha!" Hawlucha yelped, hopping out of the way as the mythical creature landed, consequently firing huge blasts of water that struck most of his foes.

" _Hoo, RAH!_ " he bellowed as he enveloped his mouth with fire before shooting a swirling ball of it that struck the metallic, snake-like creature in an explosion of smoke.

"Good to see you, Volcanion!" Mirajane chimed in, landing beside him and firing a few balls of black energy from her hands, striking Swampert and Manectric as they crashed into the walls.

" _Great to see you, too, girlie!_ " he replied with a smirk, glad that the battle seemed to be going their way. The red hovercraft was approaching the field, taking a sharp turn that was directly over a wall.

"AAAAHHH!" Jessie and James screamed simultaneously as they realized they were about to hit the structure, striking it directly and making it crack, "Oof…" they grunted before hurriedly climbing up to keep themselves from falling, with the male of the two hanging onto his partner's legs as she held onto the ledge. The vessel they were attached to landed hard upon the ground, spinning to a halt with some sparks emanating from it as several of the enemy Pokémon scattered. The docking bay then opened, revealing the others with their own teammates prepared for battle.

"Hurroooh!" Dragonair cried out, catching her master's attention as she grinned to see her with Phantump. Carbink and Simipour were also amongst the group as they departed the airship, heading out onto the field, ready to battle. Ash jumped down from the ship, with Greninja landing beside him.

"Greninja," he began to him, crossing his arms and waving them with him, "let's power up!" he yelled, sticking his right arm into the air.

"Gren!" the Water/Dark type croaked in agreement, performing the same action before being enveloped within a torrent of water that shot him upwards, "Nin… JAAAAHHHH!" he screeched as the liquid became a ball in midair, which broke apart to reveal that his form had changed. His chest resembled his trainer's jacket, and parts of his head had become red and black, just like the teen's hat and hair respectively. A giant shuriken of water had appeared upon his back as he grabbed it, tossing it down. It span rapidly before striking Pidgeot in a steam-filled explosion, blowing Sharpedo away as well.

"We're not gonna give in to Mega Evolutions without _real_ bonds!" Serena declared, throwing her arm out in command.

"Bray!" Braixen yelled, breathing a torrent of fire off of the tip of her wand-like branch. Luxray tackled Manectric aside, Bunnelby fired balls of mud at Glalie, striking him aside, and before the shark-like creature could attack, he was kicked aside by the glowing right leg of Hawlucha. Being held in Talonflame's talons, Chespin had his spikes stiffen and glow a bright white before unleashing a large array of white orbs that trailed in green streams, striking foe after foe below.

"Simee!" Simipour exclaimed before shooting a torrent of boiling water onto Houndoom, blowing him back into a wall.

"Zor!" Scizor buzzed as he enveloped himself within a whitish aura to make him appear black and white, slamming into Sableye's large jewel head on as he braced himself. He gritted his yellow teeth, struggling to hold back his opponent before being blown back by the force of his attack. In the meantime, Gingka arrived onto the battlefield, drawing his sword as Pidgeot and Swampert drew near him.

"Wind Style…" he began, enveloping the blade within a tornado-like aura, "TORNADO BURST!" he bellowed, suddenly unleashing a blast of wind around him that knocked his two adversaries back, making him smirk as he put his weapon away.

"Bay!" Banette screeched, unzipping her hands and legs open before readying fireballs of white, light blue, and purple upon her extremities, "Buh-buh-buh, bay net!" she yelled, throwing them towards Pikachu.

"Pika!" he yelped in surprise, having to hurriedly run away as the flames pursued him, scorching through bushes and other shrubbery alike.

"Pikachu!" Bonnie cried out as she saw the trouble he was in. Developing a serious expression upon its face, Squishy leapt out of her bag, racing towards him across the earth. "Squishy, wait!" she advised loudly, but to no avail as it continued onward.

"Urooo-ooo-oo!" it squeaked loudly, letting its core glow a bright white, sending out a signal that caused several green lights to streak up to the fortress from the ground below. They began merging with the cell-like being, causing its body to morph drastically. It gained the head of a canine with four legs and a strange extension protruding from its neck. When the green glow vanished, it revealed that it had transformed into a dog-like being, with its muzzle being black at the top and green elsewhere. Its eyes were white hexagons with a black outline and no discernible pupils while directly above them were two small green hexagons that resembled eyebrows. On its forehead was a very thin, white ellipse. Its "leash" was entirely green with a small red hexagon connected to the bottom. Its left front paw was green up to the elbow, while all of its other legs were completely black. On each of its legs were hexagonal protrusions; all the same color black as the legs themselves. There were two such protrusions on the back of its elbows, one on each knee, and two on each hip. One extension on the right hip was placed higher than on the left.

"Pi, pi, pika!" the Mouse Pokémon exclaimed, surprised to see the Dragon/Ground type coming towards him. He took cover behind it as it got into a ready stance.

"ERRAAAHH!" it roared, unleashing a multicolored light from its mouth in the form of a dragon's head, striking the fireballs in a huge explosion. All of a sudden, an electrical orb of energy shot out from the cloud of smoke, striking Banette and knocking her away in a yelp. Carrying Pikachu by its extension, Zygarde flung him towards Aggron as his tail shined a silvery white.

"Chu… PIKA!" he exclaimed, striking the Mega Evolved Iron Armor Pokémon directly the face, knocking him down towards the ground, while he smirked. Meanwhile, the dog-like creature made its way back to its allies, landing before them.

"Ah!" they gasped in surprise.

"Squishy!" Bonnie cheerfully said, glad to see it helping out, while Pancham and Sylveon got back into battle ready stances.

"Watch out!" Mirajane's voice cried out, catching their attentions as they saw both Beedrill and Pidgeot coming toward them, only to be stopped by the kicks and punches of the take-over wizard, who made Serena's eyes tremble.

"Whoa…" she uttered, amazed by her strength.

"Go on!" Clemont advised to Ash and Kimia, as the latter of the group had her alternate-colored Mega Gardevoir beside her, "We'll take care of this!" he promised with clenched fists.

"You sure?" his friend questioned out of concern, noticing how the conflict was somewhat escalating as most of the Mega Evolutions had yet to go down.

"You have nothing to fear, Ash!" Erza's voice echoed, catching their attentions as they saw her slash down Sharpedo and Swampert with one swipe of her sword as she donned her Heart Kreuz attire, "Leave the rest to us!" she declared, causing him to smile and nod.

"Okay," he responded.

"Let's get inside quickly!" the princess advised, racing off with him, her partner, Pikachu, and Greninja.

"Stop!" Levi commanded, about to go after them with Cherie until they were ambushed by crescent-like blades of wind that struck the ground, causing dust to billow up.

"Flame!" Talonflame squawked as he soared by, glad that he had stopped them.

"Damn…" the beret wearing woman uttered, taking a step forward. All of a sudden though, a fist came out from the veil and struck her in the face, knocking her aside onto the ground to the shock of her partner.

"Cherie!" he exclaimed, about to go over and assist her. However, Gingka jumped down in front of him, punching him in the face as well, making him hit a wall in the process.

"Been a while since we've had a good fist fight, huh?" he guessed to Erza, who requipped into an outfit of a white sarashi around the upper chest and a red hakama with a gold flame-like pattern at the bottom with black highlights, tied by white strings. Her hair was tied up in a high ponytail at the back by a green headband as she cracked her knuckles.

"These people aren't even worthy of my blades…" she muttered, smirking as she was ready to attack. Meanwhile, Kimia ran over the ground with the others, looking at the holographic screen upon her armband before coming to a stop with them.

"Right under here!" she pointed out as Volcanion arrived with Mirajane.

" _Okay, stand back!_ " the mythical creature advised, unlatching his arms and placing them against the ground. They buzzed loudly as he growled, with parts of his body glowing before he blew up the stone in a steam-filled blast, causing everyone to brace themselves. His attack had created an opening to the fortress for them, making them grin. " _Let's go,_ " the Fire/Water type told them, " _Grab on!_ " he yelled, enticing the Pokémon trainer, Pikachu, and the princess to climb onto him, while Greninja and Gardevoir jumped down into the abyss.

"Serena, take care of Dragonair and Phantump for me!" the take-over wizard called out, catching the attention of the performer.

"Got it!" she replied with a smile, making her do the same back before she jumped into the castle-like structure with the others. The serpent-like creature herself had her tail enveloped in water, using it to whip aside both Houndoom and Camerupt. They grimaced in agony as they keeled over, trying to get up, but failed as they transformed back into their original forms. While being bitten by the electrically charged teeth of Luxray, Sharpedo was greeted with a sudden chop from the glowing left arm of Hawlucha, sending him crashing into the wall. He too morphed back to his former state along with Glalie, Sableye, and Steelix as they moaned out of pain.

"Phan, tum?" the Stump Pokémon uttered in confusion, wondering what they were to do about the enemies remaining as he worried for his master. Meanwhile, Clemont gasped lightly as he felt the wind waving through his hair, coming to a stop alongside his sister.

"It feels like… we're moving!" he noted out of shock.

"Huh?" Bonnie uttered in confusion.

"Slur?" Slurpuff questioned as he saw the floating fortress head off towards the forest from the docking bay down in the kingdom.

"We're heading back the way we came…" Gingka realized, glancing back towards the battlefield, seeing his beyblade knock past Salamence and Manectric.

"RAH!" Mirajane roared from inside as she punched the steel door open, sending it flying from its hinges to allow her and the others to enter the next room, which happened to be the control center.

"The twerps…" Meowth uttered upon seeing the group while just behind him, Gengar had transformed into his Mega Evolved state, smiling evilly.

" _Ah!_ " Volcanion gasped, noticing the Soul-Heart at the center of the room, radiating a bright pink luminosity. Ash and his crush growled angrily at the sight, seeing that their friend's spirit was being used as a weapon. Meanwhile, Kimia took notice of her unconscious younger brother, who was seated just before the panels.

"Rali…" she uttered, wondering what had happened to him.

"Princess Kimia," Alva chimed in, catching their attentions, "you're looking well…" he noted to her.

"The Pokémon of Nebel Plateau protected us!" she yelled furiously while getting into a battle ready stance with the others.

"So they did, so they did…" the counselor repeated in understanding, closing his open right hand into a fist. All of a sudden, parst of the floor opened up and shot out electrical chains that wrapped around everyone in an instant, much to their shock. "I'm warning you…" the bearded man advised as they squirmed, "If you move around too much, they'll tighten up…" he pointed out to them.

" _That's nonsense…_ " the Fire/Water type retorted, about to take a step. However, his action led to the entire group getting zapped by red electricity, making them all scream in pain before it subsided.

"Ergh…" the take-over wizard groaned, transforming back into her original state out of fatigue, breathing heavily.

"Oh yes," the goggled man said, getting their attentions once more, "I was going to show you the magnificence of Magearna," he remembered, waving his hand across the holographic panel, "Unfortunately, I'm unable to demonstrate its true power at the moment…" he mentioned while activating the targeting system once more, causing the pink light to brighten, "You see, part of its heart still remains…" he pointed out, causing everyone below to gasp in surprise, "Mean Look, if you'd please," he told his partner.

"Gen garrr…" he responded, making his eyes shine a dark purple before a dark aura shrouded the Soul-Heart.

"Now it is no longer able to resist…" Alva muttered with an evil chuckle as the light brightened even more. Everyone was stunned by the sight and then turned to see the view of Nebel Plateau from the large screen, much to their surprise as the ring-shaped tree was at the center of the target.

"What are you going to do?!" Kimia asked hysterically. Outside, the large cannon reverberated with energy, buzzing louder and louder with each passing second.

"Please behold!" the counselor bellowed as he adjusted the target slightly, "The magnificence of Magearna's power…" he added in a sinister tone.

"She's strugglin'…!" Meowth noted upon sensing the spirit of the Artificial Pokémon, sounding as if his voice would break at any given moment, "Magearna's resistin' with all she's got!" he exclaimed desperately, causing Volcanion to perk up as he saw the screen contort slightly.

"When either humans or Pokémon lose the things they truly love…" the goggled man began, catching the attentions of the others as they looked on with frightened expressions, "their hearts will break," he stated, closing his hand into a fist and causing the weapon to activate, targeting the plateau "Fire!" he ordered. In an instant, the cannon shot out a gigantic beam of purple light with red electricity around it, soaring through the mountainside while on course towards its target. However, it didn't strike the plateau, but instead destroyed the field of flowers right near it, enveloping them in flames as they burned away. A dark aura emitted from within the core of the fortress, as the spirit within had almost killed the ones it had cared for. "It missed?!" the man who fired the weapon questioned in disbelief, gritting his teeth.

"This is the power… that Nikola feared…" the princess uttered as everyone was completely astonished by what had just happened. The Steam Pokémon growled, evidently angered by the action as fire burned through the entire field.

"That voice… Magearna's voice…" the tied-up Normal type sobbed as tears dropped onto his feet, "I can't hear it anymore!" he cried out.

"Meowth, what?!" Ash asked, having heard him with the others.

"What do you mean you can't hear her anymore?!" Mirajane questioned, on the verge of tears herself as she didn't seem prepared to find out the truth.

"Magearna… Poor Magearna…" the Scratch Cat Pokémon repeated sadly, looking at the core to see that it had darkened completely, "She's really gone…" he said, much to the shock of the others as they gasped.

" _What did you say?!_ " the Fire/Water type below questioned afterwards.

"Meowth, I must thank you," Alva told the talking, cat-like creature out of gratitude, "It was worth the trouble of keeping you around after all," he mentioned, "Its troublesome heart is finally out of the way," he stated, closing his hand into a fist again, "It isn't Magearna that I require at all," he continued, "but merely its Soul-Heart," he finished evilly.

" _You…_ " Volcanion growled, absolutely enraged, " _You had all better prepare yourselves,_ " he advised to the others, getting their attentions, " _I can't hold back anymore!_ " he declared, unlatching his arms and forming a sphere of blue energy in between them, growing massively in size as he glowed a bright blue, " _GGUUHHRRAAAAAHH!_ " he roared, ready to unleash his attack, but unfortunately, it burst into nothing but a puff of steam as the spots and rings around his body turned red with the sound of bell.

"No…" the take-over wizard uttered with trembling eyes, as their only hope of escape from their binds appeared to have vanished. Down on the plateau, all of the native creatures looked on at the fiery blaze that was once a beautiful flower field, realizing that their home was under attack. Back within the control room of the fortress, the targeting system of the cannon set its focus onto the ring-shaped tree of the landscape, prepared to fire onto it.

"Soul-Heart…" the counselor uttered as he readied the system, "This time we will wipe out everything that remains on the plateau!" he declared, initiating the firing sequence to the group's fright as they saw the light shine brightly downwards, charging the cannon with energy. Erza gasped as she could feel the reverberations from beneath her feet, running up to the ledge of the castle to see the growing energy.

"Ergh…" she growled in frustration, looking back to see Gingka managing to fend off Levi and Cherie by himself until he noticed the requip standing upon the wall.

"Erza, what are you doing?!" he called out in question, about to go after her until he was tackled down by the broad shouldered man.

"Don't worry, Gingka," she reassured, causing him to widen his eyes in surprise as he heard her voice, "I've done this before…" she told him, taking a deep breath of air before jumping off of the ledge.

"ERZA!" he screamed, elbowing the tan skinned man in the face, allowing him to get back up and race towards the wall, looking down to see her enveloping herself in a bright light, requipping into her Adamantine armor. She glided down to the plateau, landing down before the natives as they gasped in surprise to see her.

"Worry not!" she yelled to them, making them perk up, "I'll protect you from the blast, so you can all get out of here now!" she advised loudly, placing her arm shields together before herself. The ones behind her all gasped in surprise from her bravery, but developed serious expressions on their faces as they were not ready to abandon their home.

"Leeo!" Litleo roared, enticing everyone to run forward and stand beside the requip user, getting into ready stances. She was slightly shocked, but grinned, understanding their feelings. Back at the floating fortress, Banette and Manectric both went down and transformed back into their original forms after being struck by Zygarde and Pegasus respectively. The former of the two hopped up onto the ledge over a torrent of fire Braixen was expelling, having heard the buzzing sound continue to grow louder.

"Hey Squishy!" Bonnie cried out, wondering what it was up to. Just then, the cannon fired, followed by the Order Pokémon leaping down, glowing in a bright green light as it pursued the gigantic beam.

"Here it comes!" the scarlet haired woman shouted, enticing the others below to get ready. A magical seal appeared before her form, initially stopping the large ray as it struck. Several of the creatures behind her unleashed beams of energy that slowly pushed it back, while those further away brought up protective energy barriers to assist them. Erza grunted as she stood her ground, keeping a firm stance before taking a step forward. Meanwhile, several cell-like creatures in the shape of Squishy appeared upon trees, transforming into glowing green lights that shot towards the plateau, coming together to form a gigantic one. At the landscape, everyone continued to push the beam back with all of their available effort.

"Lit, leo! Leeeoo!" the Lion Cub Pokémon cried out to the others whom were growing tired, motivating them to keep going in their effort to protect their home.

"Agh!" the requip user yelped as her legs started to buckle, while her arm shields were slowly disintegrating, "Not… yet…" she muttered, slowly standing back up, "RRRRAAAAAHHH!" she roared, putting in all of her available strength into stopping the ray. Meanwhile at the scorched flower field, the green lights had all gathered onto the ground, growing in size before dissipating to reveal the new form the Dragon/Ground type had taken. It had a large, humanoid body with a long tail. There were several flat protrusions around its head and triangular protrusions around its neck, giving it a crown-shaped appearance. On its face were three white hexagonal marks: one in the middle of its forehead with a line through it and two being on either side that acted as eyes. There were an additional five green hexagons on its face: four along the bottom and one in the middle of a short protrusion on top. Each shoulder had two wings protruding from it. Those wings all had a hexagon and an undulating pattern: blue on the right side and red on the left. It had multiple white protrusions on its body: three on each hand acting as claws, one on each knee, and one and the front of each foot. Additionally, there were green extensions surrounding its wrists and two under the white protrusions on its knees and feet. Its abdomen had a vertical, hexagonal pattern upon it with two thin, white, and vertical marks on either side. Across its chest was a thin, zigzagging opening that faded between five colors: red, orange, white, cyan, and blue. Above the opening were two large green, hexagonal marks.

"RRRROOOAAAGGHH!" it bellowed, catching the attentions of the ones there. All the S-class wizard could see was a black blur to her left, straining herself to keep the beam at bay. Using one of its right wings that opened up at the end, Zygarde shot out a ray of multicolored light that had the shape of the heads of dragons, striking the dark beam to assist the others. In a matter of moments, the ray completely disappeared into thin air, as a shockwave reverberated throughout the area.

"Ugh…" Erza groaned as she opened up her arm shields, falling onto the ground face first while requipping back into her regular clothes.

"Mur!" Amaura cried out, going over to her side with several of the others, wondering if she okay. They rolled her over onto her back, allowing her to breathe heavily out of fatigue.

"Thank you, everyone…" she said in gratitude, smiling at them as they did the same back.

"Now what?!" Alva exclaimed from back in the control center, seeing that nothing had been destroyed despite what the cannon was able to do before.

"All right!" Ash exclaimed in relief as the others smiled, thankful for whatever had happened.

"Pika!" Pikachu squeaked delightedly. Back below, Zygarde suddenly glowed in a green light once more, shrinking down in size until it dissipated to reveal Squishy as the only one that remained.

"Uroo…" it uttered, falling flat onto the ground, evidently tired from its effort.

"What?" the counselor questioned from the fortress' control room, "What happened?!" he asked angrily.

"The Pokémon of Nebel Plateau…" Kimia began to say.

"They all protected it!" the raven haired teen finished for her.

"It can't be!" the bearded man retorted, clenching his fist tightly as it trembled, "What can those pathetic, little, sniveling Pokémon do?" he muttered in question, gnashing his teeth together.

" _Watch your mouth…_ " Volcanion responded, arching forward slightly, causing him and the others to become zapped by the red electricity once more. However, the cap wearing teen appeared to endure it, having his body grow slightly despite the growing pain. His actions surprised the mythical creature, enticing him to do the same and hold his ground, tugging at the chains surrounding him. " _We're not… We're not…_ " he repeated, with his voice growing louder and louder, " _WE'RE NOT PATHETIC!_ " he bellowed angrily," _ERRAAAAHHH!_ " he roared, finally breaking through the chains as they fell off of everyone, falling onto the ground with only mere sparks emanating from them.

"Gengar, Shadow Ball!" the goggled man commanded in a panicked tone. The poltergeist creature phased down into the floor before reappearing, readying a black ball of energy with purple sparks in front of his mouth.

"No you don't!" Mirajane exclaimed, enveloping herself in a bright purple light to the surprise of the others, taking on a new form as it dissipated. Her beloved gasped in surprise as he saw the result of her transformation. She had received two large gold-looking horns that protruded from the sides of her head and pointed upwards. Her hair became long and black, along with a distinctive short, upward ponytail that was the only indication of her being the take-over wizard. She wore a white band on her head which separated her hair, framing her bangs from her hair below it. On the forehead was a small circular symbol with a small dot on the inside and was surrounded by several dots around the top, and she wore a tied, small white-colored strap around her neck. Her attire was a very revealing, beige colored, leopard-printed kimono that bore decorative marks on her shoulders. The kimono was wrapped around her torso with a thick, decorative yellow ribbon that was tied behind her back, and she also wore thigh-high socks that revealed her heels and toes.

"S-Seilah?!" Ash stammered in shock and fright, evidently stunned by his crush's appearance as were his own Pokémon.

"I order you to halt your attack," she suddenly told the morphed Ghost/Poison type, much to the surprise of the others as they saw him suddenly let the energy sphere before him disappear.

"What?!" Alva exclaimed in disbelief.

"Quick Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" the Pokémon trainer quickly commanded, enticing his partner to nod and run forward, hopping up onto the railing before taking a big jump upwards.

"Pika… CHU!" he shrieked upon unleashing a bolt of lightning that struck the Mega Evolved Shadow Pokémon, making him grimace in agony.

"Now use Electro Ball!" the raven haired teen ordered.

"Pika, pika…" the Electric type began, charging an orb of electricity upon his tail, "chu pi!" he yelled, throwing it down to strike his opponent directly in the face within a blast of smoke, as the force of it knocked the counselor's cane out of his hand. Greninja jumped up with his master on his back as they were followed by Mirajane, as the Omni Force jumped onto the platform and took hold of the staff, while his two comrades stood off from afar, making sure no one would interfere. He took the object and headed towards the spinning core, taking a great leap off of the railing.

"RAAAAHHH!" he roared, throwing the cane in between the gears to prevent them from moving, also causing the dark stone embedded into it to break apart into pieces.

"Hah?!" the goggled man gasped out of disbelief upon noticing, turning back to see that Gengar had morphed back into his normal state, making him grimace in realization.

"Gen?" the poltergeist creature uttered in confusion as he stood up from the floor, remembering where he was, "Gehn gar!" he yelped, phasing down into the floor to escape.

"Looks like he wasn't your friend after all," the take-over wizard noted as she trotted towards the bearded man, causing him to growl angrily. Outside, the dark stones embedded into the bracelets of Levi and Cherie suddenly sparked with red electricity, catching their attentions as they saw them burst completely into nothing.

"I don't think Alva's doing too well…" the latter of the two subordinates realized before they looked over to see their remaining Pokémon all morphing back to normal; all in dazed and confused states. Those who regained consciousness started glancing around worriedly, wondering what they had done.

"Kur!" Pinsir called out, getting their attentions, "Keh, kur!" he told them, having a delighted expression on his face.

"Her, cro!" Heracross concurred with a nod, making them all glance at each other in surprise.

"It looks like they've all woken up…" Bonnie noted as Luxray and Braixen gathered with her, Serena, and Clemont.

"Dammit…" the broad shouldered man, taking out a Poké Ball, "Guess we're gonna hafta do this the hard way…" he muttered. All of a sudden, he was met a left hook from Gingka, who wrestled him over the wall before they fell down together onto the field, causing the Pokémon there to perk up along with the others.

"Gingka!" the scientist cried out, seeing him pin the large man against the stone as he gnashed his teeth.

"You think you're some kinda hero, kid?!" Levi muttered, grasping his jacket, "I bet you're gonna be dead by the end of all of this!" he added with an evil smirk.

"I've survived worse," the beyblader retorted as he chuckled a little, followed by him head-butting his foe directly on his cranium, making him hit the wall.

"Ugh…" he groaned before falling face flat onto the ground, completely knocked out.

"Egh…" the shaggy haired teen grunted, rubbing at his head, "Man, I shouldn't do that again…" he grumbled, evidently pained from the attack. Out of fright, Cherie ran off, hoping to find assistance back inside. Without warning though, something landed in front of her in an explosion of dust, followed by a fist that struck her right in the face, sending her careening back into a wall, which cracked as she fell onto the ground in a heap. It turned out the one who struck her none other than Erza, donning her Black Wing armor as she grinned.

"Erza, you're all right!" the performer noted happily as she and the others ran up to her. Reclaiming Pegasus as it jumped into his hand, stopping immediately, the Omni Force member smiled, going up to the requip user.

"Guess I shouldn't have underestimated you…" he implied with a slight chuckle as from afar, Scizor had morphed back into his original state, regrouping with the others as they all approached the redheads.

"I told you that I've handled worse," the female of the two mentioned proudly while placing her hands at her hips.

"Hey, what about Squishy?" Bonnie asked, chiming into the conversation in a worried tone.

"Oh, it's right here," the scarlet haired woman replied, much to the confusion of the beyblader before her as he blinked.

"Uh, where?" he questioned, tilting his head to the side. He then noticed her breasts jiggle slightly, blushing in realization before seeing the cell-like creature pop its head from in between them.

"Uroo!" it squeaked, having a content look on its face as Gingka just cringed.

"Did you have to put it there?" he asked in a rhetorical tone, letting a drop of sweat roll down from his head as the being hopped out and landed into the Lumiose girl's hands.

"It would've fallen off of me otherwise," the S-class mage retorted in reply, making him glance off to the side nervously while blushing.

"P-Point taken…" he stuttered. He then noticed the Poké Balls that had fallen off of both Levi and Cherie's belts, causing him to develop a serious expression on his face. "We should make sure those guys come with us," he advised to the others, gesturing towards their former enemies as they blinked in surprise. Back inside, Ash carefully stepped onto the dais where the Soul-Heart was, finding his balance as Mirajane, Pikachu, and Greninja looked on. Unbeknownst to any of them, Jessie and James were crawling about, while Rali was slowly opening his eyes, regaining consciousness as his sister gasped in relieved surprise.

"You're awake," she noted, making him smile excitedly as he stood up, going over to the railing.

"Kimia!" he cried out in delight.

"Dear Meowth!" the lavender haired man said as he and his partner finally made it to their friend, quickly undoing the rope that bound him.

"James… Jessie!" he uttered happily, evidently glad to see them. Taking hold of the sphere-shaped core with both of his hands, the Pokémon trainer gave it a twist, causing the clamps to ungrasp it, allowing him to take it away.

"Volcanion, we got it!" he called out to the ones below them, making them smile. Suddenly though, a familiar gloved hand waved over the holographic panel, activating a few sequences before shutting off completely.

"Huh?" the princess uttered in confusion, turning with the others to notice the large screen instantaneously go dark.

"Unfortunately, it seems my plans end here…" Alva's voice chimed in, catching their attentions as they looked to see him standing by the controls, "It's quite obvious that it's time to give them up," he added, running off up the steps as Ash jumped back onto the platform, "I'll simply find a new puppet to replace prince Rali!" he declared, pulling a lever that opened a gateway outside. The others growled as they saw him put on a jetpack-like device from the wall, about to escape as he floated towards the exit.

"Quick Greninja, Water Shuriken!" the raven haired teen commanded.

"Gren!" the morphed Ninja Pokémon responded, hopping up instantly as he reached at his back, pulling off the large throwing star and hurling it at their enemy. Several chains burst out from the wall to block the attack though, exploding upon contact as it appeared that the counselor was about to make an easy getaway. However, one piece of metal struck the left side of his device, making him flail around wildly before reaching the outside. Just as he made it, something grabbed the back of his coat, causing him to look and gasp to see Mirajane having taken hold of him.

"I don't think so," she said, throwing him back in a yell toward the others, causing the right engine of his pack to break as well upon impact with the floor. Having run up the steps to the top, the cap wearing teen had his body spark with electricity as he charged forwards and kicked his foe up making him tumble across the ground before slamming into a railing. He slowly stood back up, growling angrily as he undid the buckle to his contraption, letting it drop as he was evidently frustrated with how things were going.

"Just… what are you?!" he questioned, running out to try and tackle the Omni Force member, who closed his left hand into a fist as he took a deep breath.

"We… ARE FAMILY!" he bellowed in response, punching him directly in the face, making the lenses of his goggles shatter as he fell back onto the floor, grimacing in agony, "We're never gonna let you take that away…" he mentioned, breathing somewhat heavily as his body shrank back down to normal.

"That's enough, Ash," his crush advised as she floated over to them, getting their attentions, "It's all over now," she added, making him smile and nod in agreement, "I order you to sleep," she told the bearded man, causing him to gasp in surprise, "You cannot disobey me," she pointed out. Try as he might, Alva succumbed to slumber in mere moments, letting his head rest against the metal floor. Afterwards, both she and the Water/Dark type transformed back into their original states, with the former using the lever to close off the door to the outside.

" _Nice work,_ " Volcanion complimented to them as they came back down to the lower platform, " _For a couple of humans, you aren't half bad,_ " he mentioned, causing them to smile.

"Anything to help a friend or family," the cap wearing teen replied, making the Steam Pokémon smirk. He then unlatched his arms, taking the body of Magearna off of his back and placing it against the railing. In the meantime, Rali lowered the upper platform to the same level by using the holographic panel, making them connect with the sound of a click.

"Ash! Mira!" a familiar voice called out, catching their attentions as they saw Serena, Erza, Gingka, Bonnie, and Clemont rush in alongside Hawlucha, Talonflame, and Noivern.

"Everybody okay?" the Lumiose girl asked worriedly upon arriving, as the requip user beside her was donning her Heart Kreuz attire.

"And the Soul-Heart?" her brother questioned.

"Mm-hm," the Pokémon trainer responded with a nod, holding up the core for them to see. He then put his focus onto the princess-like being's body itself, while everyone gathered around him. He carefully placed the core in its center, as it shined for a moment before he closed its chest piece. The light flickered for a moment as the group watched on, waiting for a response. It suddenly shined brightly, followed by the Steel/Fairy type's eyes glowing once more, only now they seemed to have darkened. It slowly lifted its head up, much to the confusion of the others.

" _Hm?_ " Volcanion hummed after a gasp of relief, noticing that something was wrong. Kimia went over and kneeled down beside it, also seeing something odd about the mechanical marvel, taking its left arm into her hands. It turned its head eerily again, allowing her to pick it up onto its feet, while Team Rocket came over to see what had happened.

"Magearna… it's us… remember?" she asked it, enticing it to slowly turn its head towards the rest of the large group without even blinking. Everyone started to realize what was going on, glancing at each other worriedly.

"Her heart is still broken…" Meowth chimed in sadly, getting their attentions, "Sure, she can move and all that stuff…" he pointed out, "but now…" he continued in a breaking tone, "Magearna's voice… I can't hear her at all!" he cried out, on the verge of tears once again.

" _Ergh… Er…_ " the Steam Pokémon growled out of frustration and dismay. Rali just shut his eyes and gnashed his teeth together, ashamed for letting something like this happen. The others just developed their own saddened looks, knowing that they were just too late. All of a sudden, a loud bang echoed throughout the fortress.

"Ah!" everyone gasped, stumbling for a moment before immediately regaining their balance, wondering what had happened. Pieces of rock were falling off of the large structure, which appeared to be descending towards the earth. Checking the holographic panel by waving his arm over it, the prince discovered what was going on as the sound of an alarm blared throughout the area, while the cap wearing teen had returned his Pokémon to their Poké Balls.

"Oh no!" he exclaimed, "The fortress is set to fall onto Nebel Plateau!" he told everyone, causing them to gasp in fright.

"Can it be stopped?" his sister asked quickly, looking over his shoulder.

'It can't…" he replied as he checked the screen still, "Looks like the control system is out…" he noted with a grimace.

"All because of Alva..." the princess muttered as an angered expression came across her face, "And even if we were able to escape…" she began to realize, thinking of the fortress crashing into the populated plateau and exploding upon impact.

"Isn't there _any_ way at all?!" Clemont asked hysterically, hoping for a solution.

"We can't change the course…" Rali responded sadly, "The only way would be to destroy the fortress itself…" he explained with doubt in his tone.

" _You mean blow it up?_ " Volcanion asked, chiming into the conversation, " _That's my specialty,_ " he noted as a wide grin came across his face.

"Hold on…" Ash began to realize, noticing the red markings across his arms, "you're out of water!" he pointed out, knowing that he couldn't do anything to attack without it, just as the structure descended through the clouds.

"Part of the fortress runs on steam, so it has water tanks!" the prince pointed out, showing a diagram of the contraption on the holographic screen, "Volcanion, I'll take you there," he said to the Fire/Water type.

" _Hm,_ " he responded with a nod, " _Please do,_ " he advised.

"Everybody, wait on my sister's hovercraft!" the male royal told the others.

"I'll go with you!" the raven haired teen suggested as he pumped his fist.

"Pi kachu!" Pikachu squeaked in agreement.

"Me too!" Mirajane chimed in with a serious look on her face. As the fortress continued its rapid descent, the small group raced into the next room.

"Over here!" the blonde haired boy cried out, pointing towards the wheel upon the water tank. The mythical creature stopped for a moment, sniffing at the air around him.

" _I can smell water…_ " he noted, catching the attention of the take-over wizard beside him.

"ERGH!" the two boys grunted loudly after they took hold of the valve, trying to turn it with all of their might as they gnashed their teeth.

"This thing's… really stuck!" Rali pointed out after letting out another grunt.

"I've got it!" the Pokémon trainer yelled in realization, letting go and backing away from the wheel, "Go for it, Pikachu!" he advised to his partner, "Iron Tail!" he ordered.

"Pika!" he responded, immediately hopping upwards as his tail shined in a silvery light, "Chu… pika!" he exclaimed, swinging down to strike the valve, making it move slightly.

"Thanks, bud!" his master said in gratitude as landed into the arms of the Satan Soul user, who smiled at him before going over to assist the boys, taking hold of the wheel and turning it with them, "Ergh…!" her beloved grunted, managing to move it quickly as water poured out into a small reservoir below, "It worked!" he said happily.

" _All right…_ " Volcanion grunted, jumping down and landing before the water, unlatching his arms and sticking them into it, sucking up the liquid in large quantities as the others watched on.

"Mm…" the prince hummed out of thought as he recalled his previous actions, "Excuse me…" he began to the teen beside him, catching his attention, "you said your name was Ash, right?" he questioned to him.

"That's right," he replied with a grin.

"I've been acting like such a fool…" the royal confessed, gripping the railing tightly, "Spending so long shutting myself up in my lab…" he grumbled, "That's why… Alva had such an easy time tricking me…" he realized, evidently more ashamed.

"Know what I think?" the Omni Force member questioned, "You should head out on your own journey with a Pokémon," he suggested to him, causing him to perk up.

"Huh?" he uttered in surprise, blinking rapidly.

"Mm-hm," the raven haired teen replied with a simple nod, "Being on a journey is a great way to learn about yourself and the people you meet," he explained to him, "There's so much more out in the world than just the past," he mentioned, glancing up at the ceiling, "There's the present, the future, and all the things you'll get to see that are sometimes the biggest moments of your life," he told him, also causing his crush to smile brightly at him.

"Pi kachu!" Pikachu squeaked in agreement. Rali was admittedly stunned by the offer, but smiled, glad to know that he seemed to have a friend. All of a sudden, another blast echoed throughout the area.

"Ah!" he gasped in surprise, realizing that the structure was beginning to descend faster, breaking apart as pieces of it fell to the earth, smashing into it and causing several Pokémon to scatter. Just then, the red markings on the Fire/Water type's arms clicked back to a cool blue. Moments later, he and the others were racing through the fortress, passing over the larger core that span wildly above them. Upon noticing, he came to a stop, looking at it in wonder.

"Huh?" Ash uttered upon hearing the lack of his stomping feet, stopping with his partner and the prince "Volcanion?" he said in confusion, seeing him glancing at the spinning power source.

" _Say… perhaps I should make an explosion right here,_ " he suggested to them.

"It is the fortress' core," the blonde haired boy noted, "so it would be effective… but…" he continued, stopping for a moment.

"Then… you won't be able to escape…" the Omni Force member pointed out, while Mirajane gave off a very concerned look.

"Pika, pika!" the Mouse Pokémon added to him.

"Yes, that's the truth!" the royal concurred with outstretched arms.

"You said you're powerful enough to level a whole mountain, right?" the Pokémon trainer inquired, "So why not follow the plan and blow it up from outside?" he recommended to him.

" _Hm,_ " the mythical creature hummed as he let off a small grin, " _All right,_ " he agreed, " _We'll all go back together!_ " he promised to them.

"Yeah!" the cap wearing teen concurred with a pump of his fists.

"Pika!" Pikachu squeaked happily, followed by the sound of something collapsing, making them gasp in surprise.

"Let's hurry!" Rali advised, running off with the aspiring Pokémon master and his partner.

" _Hey, girlie,_ " Volcanion said, catching the attention of the take-over wizard before she could go after her friends, turning around to face him, " _Make sure… you take good care of that kid,_ " he told her as she lightly gasped, " _I'm sure he'll be there for you more than I ever was for Magearna…_ " he confessed, glancing down at the floor ashamedly, " _I can't blast this place apart from outside…_ " he added to her honestly, gnashing his teeth in frustration as she trotted up to him, " _I'd only be taking off a good chunk of this rock at best,_ " he continued, trembling in place, " _so I have to do this…_ " he stated, " _Please… forgive me…_ " he pleaded out of frustration. All of a sudden, he felt a pair of arms wrap around his head, being the Satan Soul user's as she embraced him warmly, much to his surprise.

"You are a hero…" she uttered, making him gasp a little, "To us and all of those Pokémon, including Magearna…" she mentioned as she pulled herself away, placing her left hand onto the right side of his head, "She'd be proud of you for what you're doing," she finished with a small smile. Tears dropped out of the Fire/Water type's eyes before he turned his head away, letting out a little sniffle.

" _Don't make me cry now, dammit…_ " he cursed, blinking to remove the tears, " _Let's just get you outta here first…_ " he recommended, making her nod in agreement as they charged after their friends. Moments later outside, the unconscious trio of Alva, Cherie, and Levi were loaded onto the hovercraft along with over a dozen Poké Balls that rested within Gingka's bag, as he, Erza, Serena, Clemont, Bonnie, Kimia, Team Rocket, and Magearna awaited the return of their friends. They then noticed the steam billowing from the hole in the earth, as the Fire/Water type flew out by propelling himself with steam shooting from the nozzles of his arms, having the others hold onto him. He slowly descended before landing upon the vessel, allowing for his passengers to get off and board it.

"Okay Volcanion, go get 'em!" Ash advised with confidence in his tone.

" _Hm,_ " he responded, expelling steam from his arms to get off of the aircraft, landing upon the ground beside it. He turned around and trotted back to the hole, appearing prepared to fire as the airship floated over him.

" _Get onboard after the blast!_ " Kimia communicated loudly through the ship's microphone.

" _All right!_ " he responded, readying his left arm as he aimed it up at the red machine, " _Just GO!_ " he bellowed, expelling a huge blast of steam onto the bottom of it, propelling it high up into the sky in an instant as everyone aboard it yelled.

"Ah!" the raven haired teen gasped, looking back down to see the mythical creature jumping back into the hole, "Volcanion!" he cried out worriedly. Mirajane's expression shifted to a concerned frown, as she was the only one who knew of what he was planning. Meanwhile, the hovercraft was narrowly avoiding bits of debris that fell off from the fortress, with its pilot gripping the controls tightly.

"No!" she exclaimed, "Not like this!" she yelled, adjusting the throttle as she clenched her teeth. Some pieces of rock flew down and struck the wings of her vessel, but she managed to keep it maintained, determined to go back and save the Steam Pokémon.

"Requip!" the scarlet haired woman's voice shouted as she stood up and enveloped herself in a golden light, which dissipated moments later to reveal her donning another armor that appeared to be made up of silver metal. The upper part of it consisted of a small breastplate that was composed of feather-shaped plates that pointed upwards with a large metal flower on the front, which extended along her hips. Including that, her biceps were covered by metal straps and her very large, plated gauntlets sported feather-shaped plates at the edges. Furthermore, her waist was circled by large, decorated plates, reminiscent of feathers that lied upon a long skirt. She wore a pair of plated boots which were partially hidden under the skirt, each sporting metal ornaments like wings. Also, she wore a neck guard made of feather-like plates and a tiara with prominent metal wings. Along with that, she sported two pairs of large metal wings which adorned her back, composed of metal feathers which were longer and larger at the edges. Two swords appeared in her hands, while several others appeared in the sky around the hovercraft. "Heaven's Wheel…" she began, jumping up at the oncoming debris, much to the shock of the others, "SCATTERED PETALS!" she roared, slicing a huge rock apart into dust. Her dozens of swords flew out and struck the falling stone as well, preventing them from hitting the aircraft as she landed back on it, requipping into her Heart Kreuz armor.

"Nice one, Erza!" Clemont complimented as she still had a serious expression on her face. Back inside the large structure, the Fire/Water type finally arrived at the core, standing just below it as he looked up.

" _Well, I'm going out with a bang…_ " he joked as he unlatched his arms with a click, preparing another blue orb of energy upon them, " _Let's… go!_ " he exclaimed, making the sphere grow in size over his own form as it glowed a bright blue, enveloping the area within the luminosity, " _Magearna…_ " he uttered, " _I couldn't protect you…_ " he said ashamedly, " _Forgive me…_ " he apologized, shutting his eyes for a moment, " _RRRRRAAAAAAAAHHHH!_ " he roared loudly, making the white light brighten and shine throughout the whole room. Outside, the blue glow of the castle-like structure caught the eyes of the people on the hovercraft, which turned so they could get a better look at it, hearing the buzzing sound growing louder.

"Volcanion…!" Ash gasped, realizing what was about to happen. Mirajane stood beside him and bit her bottom lip, unsure of what to say. Everyone on the plateau watched the fortress shine even more brightly, becoming shrouded by a blue mass of energy before completely exploding in a burst of steam, sending out a shockwave that reverberated throughout the area. The vessel in midair was forced away from the blast, while debris crashed down into the lake upon the landscape below.

"No way…" Gingka uttered with widened eyes as he stood up, seeing the giant cloud of smoke and dust that remained from the explosion.

"You lied to us!" his best friend yelled out of frustration, "You said… we'd all go back together!" he added, looking all the more saddened by what had happened.

"Pika, pika!" Pikachu cried out in dismay. While everyone else looked on, the Artificial Pokémon remained deathly silent, as the cold look in its eyes did not seem to care for its friend. Moments later, the vessel descended onto the plateau, with everyone aside from Team Rocket and Alva's group disembarking. Kimia led the Steel/Fairy type over to a tree stump as the others followed, seating it down carefully.

"Magearna," the Pokémon trainer began to it, "everyone here's safe…" he told it, gesturing toward the creatures who all appeared to be saddened, "Volcanion protected them…" he added, "I wish… you could hear what I'm saying…" he finished with a depressed look in his eyes. The Soul-Heart suddenly blinked for a moment, followed by the mechanical marvel's eyes brightening, lifting its head up. However, the glow went away as its head hung low once again. Everyone looked on with somber and frustrated expressions, as Bonnie went over to her brother, letting him place his hand onto her head reassuringly, while the beyblader put his own extremity onto the left shoulder of the requip user. Litleo and Amaura trotted up and rubbed their heads against their motherly friend, trying to get it to remember who they were as they moaned sadly in desperation. Rali looked away out of frustration, thinking that most of this was his own fault. Even Jessie, James, and Meowth couldn't help but be saddened by the sight, worried that all hope was lost as they stood beside the aircraft. Suddenly, a cloud of steam rolled in, much to their surprise as they gasped, seeing it envelop the entire area.

"What's all this?" Serena asked, glancing around with everyone else in confusion. They didn't notice the core of the princess-like being glow once again, blinking rapidly as its eyes were brightening. The others looked at them in surprise, seeing that they were the same color they were supposed to be. Just then, it began to hear the sound of stomping from afar as a familiar figure emerged from the lake water. It turned its head and stood up on its own, slowly trotting off to the amazement of the group. As it trekked onward, it could the footsteps growing closer and closer, enticing it to start running and beep happily upon seeing the familiar silhouette. It turned out to be the Fire/Water type, who the Artificial Pokémon embraced out of joy.

"Ah!" everyone near the stump gasped in delight, relieved that he was okay as they ran up to them.

" _Magearna…_ " he uttered, unlatching his arms and wrapping his left one around it warmly, glad to know that its spirit had been restored as the others arrived beside them; all voicing sounds of relief, " _Uh… er… ugh…_ " he suddenly grunted as his legs began to buckle, letting go of his close friend. Try as he might, he fell onto the ground in a heap, grimacing all the while. He then closed his eyes with one last grunt, much to the shock of the others as they gasped.

"Volcanion!" Ash exclaimed, going up to his unconscious form with the group, kneeling down to pet him on the head, "Hang in there…" he reassured, nudging him slightly, only to receive no response, "Volcanion?" he uttered, wondering if they were too late to do anything.

"Pi ka…" Pikachu squeaked sadly in realization as everyone became saddened again from the thought of losing the mythical creature. The Steel/Fairy type perked up as it recalled something, kneeling down in front of its friend and opening its right arm, releasing a bouquet of pretty pink flowers. The pollen upon them was absorbed into the nostrils of the Steam Pokémon, much to the surprise of the others as they saw them move.

"He's alive!" Erza yelled, noticing him squirm slightly.

"And about to blow!" Gingka mentioned as he cringed, "Everyone, run!" he advised quickly, racing off with the others and the natives as his raven haired friend, Mirajane, Pikachu, and the mechanical marvel stayed behind.

" _Ah… Ah… AH… AH…_ " the quadruped started as he jerked his head up with each breath he took, about to unleash a great blast as parts of his body glowed, " _AHCHOOOO!_ " he sneezed, expelling a blast of steam that blew out the fog in the rest of the area while also sending the Omni Force member, his partner, and his crush flying away in a yelp, " _I told you not to do that!_ " he reprimanded to the princess-like being as it had protected itself in its ball-like form, popping out to greet him along with the rest of their friends.

"Oh jeez…" the cap wearing teen grunted with a grin, lying upon the ground beside the take-over wizard and the Electric type before they got back on their feet.

" _You?_ " the mythical creature uttered out of surprise upon seeing him and the rest of the humans all getting up from the ground, " _You're still here?_ " he asked, catching their attentions.

"I said I wanna protect Pokémon, right?" Ash inquired rhetorically, letting Pikachu jump onto his right shoulder, "I would never tell a lie," he stated proudly.

"Pika, pika!" his partner squeaked in agreement.

" _Hmph,_ " Volcanion scoffed in response as he shook his head, " _All of you…_ " he uttered, thankful for their help in their time of need, " _You know what?_ " he continued, causing them to all perk up, " _I'm going to make you honorary Nebel Plateau Pokémon!_ " he declared with a smug smirk.

"Honorary Pokémon?" the raven haired teen questioned, tilting his head in confusion.

"Hey, that sounds really cool!" Serena admitted as she smiled.

"Yeah! I like it!" Bonnie agreed happily.

"Uroo?" Squishy uttered, poking itself out of its caretaker's bag, allowing for her to take it into her arms.

"Yep!" she concurred, "Right, Squishy?" she guessed to it, causing it to simply nod.

"Uroo-ooh!" it squeaked in agreement.

"Well, I'm happy to accept," Clemont stated while bowing, "It's a real honor!" he exclaimed.

"It's your way of saying that you trust us now, right?" Mirajane guessed, much to the surprise of her friends as they glanced out to see the Steam Pokémon let out a chuckle.

" _Well… I couldn't keep that a secret forever…_ " he confessed sheepishly. His words brought a look of astonishment onto the take-over wizard's face, followed by an ashamed expression as she turned to her beloved.

"Gen…" a familiar voice suddenly uttered, catching everyone's attention as they turned to see the blue colored Gengar approaching them.

"That's Alva's!" Rali gasped in fright, backing up slightly.

"No, it's all right," the Satan Soul user chimed in reassuringly, "He was only under the control of the stones they had like the others," she explained, trotting up to the Shadow Pokémon.

"That reminds me…" Gingka remembered, reaching into his bag and pulling out the plethora of Poké Balls he had, opening them up after enlarging them, letting their lights spill out onto the ground and come into form. When they all dissipated, they revealed Alakazam, Glalie, Houndoom, Sableye, Camerupt, Aggron, Beedrill, Salamence, Tyranitar, Manectric, Swampert, Pidgeot, Banette, and Steelix, along with Heracross and Pinsir being sent out. The natives all were surprised by their sudden appearance, but then noticed the remorseful looks in their eyes.

"It's all right," Erza reassured to their former enemies, trotting up to them and getting their attentions, "We're all your friends now," she stated with a smile, making them gasp lightly as tears formed in their eyes, stunned at how they were forgiven as they cried.

"Gar…?" the Ghost/Poison type uttered in confusion upon seeing his friends acting so apologetic.

"You can change, too," Mirajane mentioned to him, catching his attention as he looked to see her kneel down to his eye level, "We all know that you weren't being treated fairly by those people," she continued, "so we wanna make things better for you," she told him, letting off a grin.

"Geng…" Gengar said afterwards as his eyes trembled, "Gen, gar geng gen gar!" he begged to her suddenly, taking her left hand into his own two, much to her surprise.

"You want to come with me?" she guessed with a blink of her eyes, getting a simple nod in response from him, "All right," she concurred, pulling out a Poké Ball from beneath her dress, tapping it against his head. It popped open, causing the creature before her to become red light and get sucked into the device, which closed up. It blinked a bright red as it shook for a moment, stopping with a click to indicate that the catch was successful, making the white haired beauty smile. She then stood up and looked over at her beloved, as he did the same back, grinning at her warmly. Meanwhile, the native Pokémon were all being happily acquainted with their new friends, who seemed to be happier than ever.

"Pika!" Pikachu squeaked, jumping off of his master's shoulder to go off and play with them.

"Dennay!" Dedenne cried out, racing after him after hopping down from his owner's head.

" _Hey, electric rat,_ " Volcanion chimed in, catching the attention of the Electric type.

"Pika?" he questioned, trotting closer to him.

" _Your friend, Ash…_ " he started to say, looking towards him," _He always seems to be getting himself into trouble,_ " he pointed out.

"Pikah?" the Mouse Pokémon uttered in confusion with a tilt of his head.

" _Take extra good care of him,_ " the Fire/Water type advised, while Magearna let out a beep of agreement.

"Pika! Pi, kachu!" the rabbit-like creature promised as a response, making him chuckle before looking out at the others.

" _That goes for you too, girlie!_ " he called out to the take-over wizard, catching her attention as she and the others looked over at him, " _Don't let that kid get into any more trouble…_ " he recommended. She blinked in befuddlement for a moment before understanding what he meant, smiling brightly.

"I will," she reassured, while the wind swept through the plateau and blew past their hair, making it sway. Team Rocket watched from afar as the humans gathered with the Pokémon, smiling to see them all interacting happily. They then took off, leaving to enjoy their time together as the chaos had ended.

 **END**

 **And that's that! In all honesty, I really liked this film. It had some awkward lines that I had to change around here and there, but it was still good nonetheless. Now we move on to the rest of the drama in this story, being centered around our main leads from Fairy Tail… or at least the remnants of it…**

 **Stay tuned! And here's the last part of the scenario from SpiritReaper42!**

 **SCENARIO**

 **Metal Gear Excelsus: *swings the left blade at Raiden***

 **Raiden: *swings Murasama to block* Don't tell me this is all you got.**

 **Ash Ketchum: Pikachu, Thunderbolt!**

 **Pikachu: Pika… CHU! *unleashes Thunderbolt onto Metal Gear Excelsus***

 **Metal Gear Excelsus: *felt unfazed before swinging another blade***

 **Ash Ketchum: Whoa! *dodges it* How'd that not do anything?!**

 **Spirit Reaper: It's running on Nanomachines. Electricity doesn't shut it down. *glances at the Metal Gear***

 **Ash Ketchum: Then why don't we try water instead?**

 **Greninja: *nods in understanding***

 **Raiden: Water couldn't do just as much as electricity, but go right ahead. *uses Ninja Run***

 **Erza Scarlet: *requips into her Lightning Empress armor* He's quite annoying, isn't he?**

 **Metal Gear Excelsus: *swings both blades***

 **Raiden: *dodges over with a few flips***

 **Spirit Reaper: *teleports and looks* We'll have to target it's front legs. *summons Yamato and cuts through dimensions to slash its leg off****

 **Metal Gear Excelsus: *fires two lasers aiming straight at them***

 **Ash Ketchum: Watch out! *ducks***

 **Spirit Reaper: *dodges and looks* Oh no. It's aiming at the others! They still haven't recovered!**

 **Erza Scarlet: Hold on, I can requip into my Adamantine armor and-!**

 **Spirit Reaper: Leave that to me! *uses a magic shield on them* You three are on your own on this one! I have to focus on the shield!**

 **Ash Ketchum: Got it! Greninja, Water Shuriken!**

 **Greninja: Gren! *tosses large Water Shuriken that slices through the other leg of the Metal Gear Excelsus***

 **Raiden: You managed to get its other leg off. *glances at Ash* You and your friend, throw all of your electricity on me. I'll finish this.**

 **Ash Ketchum: Wh-What?!**

 **Raiden: *aims Murasama at Ash* I'm not gonna ask again... or otherwise we can finish what both Strauss and Tommy couldn't do... and you know how much she went through... *chuckles darkly***

 **Ash Ketchum: Ergh…**

 **Spirit Reaper: Ash, his eyes may be cold and dark, but inside he once suffered as a kid. He wanted to save the innocent, but from where he lives, it's not possible and it never will be. But that never stopped. And trust me, he wouldn't hesitate to destroy me when he and I met.**

 **Ash Ketchum: *clenches fists tightly before charging at him* Fine! *envelops himself in electricity* LIGHTNING STRAIT! *goes through him in a burst of lightning***

 **Raiden: AGH! *slides back but cackles maliciously* Alright. People once referred as Jack the Ripper and you'll see why... *glares at the Metal Gear* And I think it's time for Jack to let her rip!**

 **Metal Gear Excelsus: *swings a blade at Raiden***

 **Raiden: *slices it off with ease* How pathetic... *glances at Erza* Scarlet, throw everything you got on this thing!**

 **Erza Scarlet: Got it! *spins spear and stabs it into the Excelsus***

 **Metal Gear Excelsus: *falls on both legs***

 **Raiden: Playtime's over! *grabs its blade and lifts it up before throwing it down***

 **Ash Ketchum: Whoa! How's he doing that?!**

 **Spirit Reaper: Raiden once picked up a thousand ton Metal Gear Ray. During that time, he wasn't even in his final form.**

 **Raiden: *rips its blade off before throwing it up high***

 **Spirit Reaper: *teleports along with the others* Better watch out before that building size blade lands!**

 **Raiden: *catches the blade and slices the Metal Gear while using Zandatsu***

 **Erza Scarlet: It's that move again…**

 **Spirit Reaper: It's Zandatsu. It causes Raiden's perception of time to slow anywhere from 50 to 90 percent. It gives him plenty of time to chop through his foes as precisely or rapidly as he'd like.**

 **Raiden: *swings blade at the Metal Gear while throwing himself over, having it explode and lands on both feet***

 **Spirit Reaper: *goes back to normal while removing the rings* Hopefully we won't be seeing that again. That sure was a lot of electricity to boost an already powerful cyborg ninja**

 **Raiden: *deactivates Ripper Mode* Like I said to Strauss... It's only nature running its course...**

 **Ash Ketchum: *growls a little***

 **Tommy Oliver: *gets back up before helping Nightwing up* Well, looks like this fight will have to be a draw.**

 **Mirajane Strauss: *helps Gingka onto his feet* Guess so…**

 **Nightwing: *puts mask back on* Next time we fight, things will probably be different.**

 **Erza Scarlet: *requips into her Heart Kreuz attire* I somehow doubt that…**

 **Inuyasha: About time. *walks up to them* You guys took too long with this fight.**

 **Ryu: It was an excellent fight, and it brings me another motivation to continue training.**

 **Wolverine: Are we done here? We're not here to keep talking.**

 **Spirit Reaper: Yeah, yeah, Logan. *summons the portal and smiles* Well, we better get going. We have a mission and it was a fun battle. Aside from that Metal Gear of course.**

 **Ash Ketchum: Good luck, Spirit Reaper!**

 **Spirit Reaper: Right. Farewell! *goes in the portal***

 **Team Spirit: *follows Spirit except for Raiden***

 **Gingka Hagane: *notices him still there* Hey, why aren't you going with them?**

 **Raiden: I wanna know one thing. *glances at Mira and Erza* I somehow know you both have suffered just as I have. In younger years to say the least. Compared to someone like me, who has a sick thirst for pain and denies being called a hero by those I can count on, what kind of philosophy you both have lived by to move on from your past?**

 **Erza Scarlet: *thinks for a moment* That's simple. We have friends by our side.**

 **Mirajane Strauss: It might not be why you fight, but we do because they're people we care about and want to see smile.**

 **Raiden: Yeah... Fighting for reasons they don't understand, causes they don't believe in...**

 **Erza Scarlet: But we do believe in our reasons.**

 **Raiden: I learned that from a senator who wanted to be President so he could have the strong purge the weak... until I stopped him. Unlike how you spare your foes, I didn't...**

 **Mirajane Strauss: Still, you're a hero to others.**

 **Raiden: *chuckles* That's right. I wanted to save the weak, but I'm no different than them. I hurt a lot of bad people who suffered in a way for me to save others including orphans.**

 **Ash Ketchum: Raiden…**

 **Raiden: My friends call me a hero, but they're wrong... *turns to walk to the portal* At least we're there for each other and besides... *looks at them as his eye glowed red and smirks* Heh... I have my own war to fight... *goes through the portal***

 **Mirajane Strauss: *smiles a little***

 **END SCENARIO**

 **And that's that! Now the epilogue for this story is gonna be somewhat short compared to the previous chapters. Just a fair warning considering how "Compassion" had such a rushed epilogue. I'm only wrapping up the story and such, so no need for anyone to rant on me about it.**

 **I'll see you all later!**

 **QUOTE**

 _ **What you did can be forgiven, but that's only if you can forgive yourself.**_

 **Mirajane Strauss**

 **To Alain after Team Flare crisis**


	7. EPILOGUE

**And it comes down to this. After the epilogue, there'll be a special sneak peek into one of the upcoming chapter of a story I'm working on. What will it be? You'll have to wait and find out!**

 **In the meantime, let's wrap up "Volcanion & The Mechanical Marvel"!**

 **VOLCANION & THE MECHANICAL MARVEL**

After everything that had conspired between the Azoth Kingdom and Nebel Plateau, the large group left the latter place, saying goodbye to the natives, Volcanion, and Magearna. They returned to the city for a few days where they were treated to a gracious stay in the royals' home, with Bonnie even trying to get Clemont hooked up with Kimia's advisor. In the meantime, Alva and his subordinates were taken into custody, and their ally Pokémon were now under the protection of the kingdom.

However, Gingka had made a request that they be transferred to the Sycamore Pokémon Lab, saying that they would be more than happy to remain there for the time being. All of them gladly accepted the offer, but Pinsir vowed to stay with Erza, much to her delight as she had a new partner. With their time spent well, the group finally left the city, saying their goodbyes before heading back off onto their journey to Lumiose City: the site of the Kalos League. On their trek though, Ash noticed a distinct expression in his crush's eyes, seeing that they were somewhat despondent. It vaguely reminded him of that eerie nightmare he once had, but he quickly disregarded it when he saw her smile.

Several things happened upon their arrival at their destination. After almost being disqualified for being late to his first battle, the raven haired teen went ahead and defeated those that stood in his way throughout the competition, whether it be Applejack, Astrid, Sawyer, or even his final opponent, Alain. He ended up winning the entire tournament, resulting in a celebration that everyone thought would last for days to come. But the jubilance was short lived when disaster struck. Team Flare had made its move and was using their controlled Zygarde to envelop the entire city in vines in order to bring the world to a 'rebirth' of sorts. Needing to find out more, the group headed out to Lysandre Labs to learn what had caused all this, only to find that the scarf wearing teen was on the side of the enemy, as he tried to stop them from going any further.

The beyblader managed to battle him to a draw, but it was all for naught when they could not discover nearly enough information about what was happening in the city. Back there, the Pokémon trainer ran into the subordinate, demanding answers until he learned that he was looking for his friend, Mairin. They set out to locate her together, only for the Omni Force member to end up captured by Team Flare, unbeknownst to anyone. When the rest of the group arrived at Prism Tower and learned of the evil intentions of their enemies, they vowed to put a stop to them along with Squishy, who they discovered was the Order Pokémon this whole time.

The take-over wizard and Fluttershy went up to the top of the tower to meet up with their raven haired comrades, as the older of the two changed for the better and decided to help him rather than follow his boss' ambitions. In the meantime, Serena, Rainbow Dash, and Sunset Shimmer went along with Sycamore and the young girl to locate the latter's Chespin at the site on the outskirts of the city. Clemont stayed behind with Pinkie Pie and Clembot to fight off the admins in order to access the gym, while the former's sister ran off after the dueling pair of Zygarde, with Blaziken Mask, Gingka, and Erza staying close to her.

Battle after battle ensued, as various things fell into place. The leader of the villainous organization found himself defeated at the hands of the Bond Phenomenon of the animal whisperer and her Infernape, with the former activating her drive mode for the first time upon seeing her crush in tears over her being in pain. However, Lysandre ended up falling off of the tower before anyone could attempt to save him, appearing as if he was lost for good.

Both Zygarde went back into their core states thanks in part to the Lumiose girl's song to the one she had taken care of, while the other was rescued as the scientist destroyed the control device, which in turn meant the sacrifice of his robotic creation. Meanwhile at the labs on the outskirts, the performer and the rest of their group, along with Team Rocket, fought against numerous amounts of goons in order to retrieve Mairin's partner. They did so successfully with the help of Steven Stone and his alternate colored Mega Metagross, but only for a short while.

As they went on to recover data surrounding the mysterious megalith that was being held in the building, it suddenly absorbed the Spiny Nut Pokémon and began to grow, becoming shaped like the legendary Dragon/Ground type, but made entirely of stone and crystal. It was heading for the Anistar City sundial, which if absorbed would lead to the destruction of the entire world. Everyone gathered together, including the Kalos gym leaders and champion to fend off the malicious foe that was the last one that needed to be defeated. They were successful in getting Chespie out of its body, but they appeared to be at a loss when faced with Lysandre revealing that he was alive, controlling the beast with his machines. The two cores on the ground finally agreed to put a stop to it, taking on their perfect form together and defeating the gigantic adversary, also catching the Team Flare leader within the last blast apparently. With the day saved, Squishy and its friend had to depart to the dismay of Bonnie, but she gladly understood as she gave off a tearful goodbye.

Days passed since the incident, and Lumiose City was steadily being mended from the crisis, as the protector of Kalos had made all of the vines disappear. Everyone was recovering well, with Alain making his amends by turning his Mega Ring and Charizardite X into the custody of the police, while members of the Omni Force stayed to repair the city. Some were unsure of what to do next, while Ash was prepared to return home to the Kanto region and relax, knowing that even as he had won the league, his Champion's League challenge would have to be postponed due to the repairs being made to the city. Mirajane was smiling at his enthusiasm to start again from zero and grow stronger, but her expression was becoming all the more concerned as she knew that there was something that she needed to tell him eventually.

As the group was returning from a visit to the wetlands, where the raven haired teen was planning to part ways with his Goodra, only to discover that he could stay with him as the area was well protected, chaos ensued. The same vines that attacked the city were reappearing, followed by Xerosic of Team Flare showing up. After the group apprehended him, they then discovered both of the Zygarde cores, as they revealed that residual vines were popping up around the area, trying to get rid of them. The red one of the two was saddened to tell its former caretaker that it would likely not see her for quite some time, but she was okay with it, glad to know that it had an important job to take care of.

"H-Hmm…" she sniffed, wiping her eyes with her right arm after they had departed.

"Guess that's that…" Gingka realized as he blinked for a moment, "Hard to believe everything fell into place like this," he added, glancing down at the ground.

"Yeah," Erza agreed, not noticing the despondent look in the eyes of her white haired friend, "but it's good to know that Zygarde and Squishy are taking care of cleaning things up," she mentioned, making the rest of the group smile.

"Well, we should get going!" Ash chimed in, adjusting the straps of his backpack, "Wouldn't wanna miss dinner now, would we?" he questioned sarcastically, about to head off, walking past his crush.

"Actually…" she started to say, catching his attention along with those of the others, "we should get going, too…" she admitted, much to his confusion as he blinked and turned to face her.

"Mira?" he uttered, wondering what she meant.

"We have to head back home at some point, right?" she inquired rhetorically, making him lightly gasp in realization.

"Oh, yeah," he answered, letting off a little grin.

"That's too bad…" Clemont admitted as both his sister and the performer beside him let off saddened frowns, "We'd be making a great meal to send all of you off," he told them happily.

"That'd be very nice," the requip user admitted as she trotted over to her maiden friend, "but we do need to head back and get to work again," she stated, placing her right hand onto her shoulder while nodding.

"All right," the beyblader chimed in, pulling out his MPG from the pocket of his pants, "I'll just take you two back from where I picked Erza up," he said, activating the device as its holographic screen appeared over it. As he scrolled through its index, the raven haired teen looked over at the take-over wizard worriedly. Seeing that despondent expression that reminded him of what happened in his dream, making him all the more wary as he closed his hand into a fist, letting it tremble.

"Hey, Mira?" he uttered, causing her and the others to perk up, glancing over at him, "Something happened with the guild… am I right?" he guessed, much to her surprise as her eyes widened, while the scarlet haired woman glanced off to the side ashamedly, catching the attention of the one beside her.

"Ash… you always are the perceptive type…" the Satan Soul user noted before turning away in a saddened manner, making him bite his bottom lip nervously.

"What's wrong?" Gingka asked, arching an eyebrow, "Did you guys not get the guild repaired yet?" he inquired out of concern.

"Maybe you're having financial trouble?" Clemont implied with a blink of his eyes.

"Pika pi…" Pikachu squeaked worriedly.

"No, it's nothing like that," the requip mage responded to them, folding her arms over her chest, "The guild itself is… well…" she tried to say, glancing over at the white haired woman.

"Fairy Tail… was disbanded…" she blurted out with quivering lips, causing everyone else aside from the S-class wizard beside her to gasp in shock. Her beloved was especially stunned as his eyes trembled.

"Wh-What?!" Serena stuttered out of disbelief.

"What do you mean… disbanded?" Bonnie asked with a worried look on her face.

"Dennay…?" Dedenne squeaked out of confusion, somewhat overwhelmed by the news.

"Why did you guys break up?" the beyblader asked while closing his hands into fists.

"It wasn't our decision…" Erza responded, making him perk up, "Makarov was the one who made the choice for us to go on our own paths," she explained, evidently sorrowful about what conspired.

"No way…" the Omni Force member with her uttered, "And neither of you did anything to stop it?!" he questioned angrily.

"We didn't have a choice in the matter!" the scarlet haired woman argued back, "And even if we had… Master was adamant…" she told him, glancing at the ground, "It's not we were _all_ there to stand up for ourselves at the time…" she mentioned as he gnashed his teeth together.

"That's-!" Before he could even say another word for his remark, they both heard the sound of sniffling right beside them, emanating from the lips of Mirajane as tears were dropping out of her eyes.

"I-I'm sorry…" she apologized with a stutter, "I'm so sorry…!" she repeated in a breaking voice. Ash was completely in shock upon seeing her in such a state, more so than the rest of his friends and teammates.

"Pika pi…" Pikachu chimed in, jumping down from his trainer's shoulder to approach the take-over wizard, only to stop himself as he felt she needed space.

"Mirajane…" Serena uttered, tearing up herself at the sight of her crying.

"We should go…" Erza blurted out, followed by a nod from the beyblader beside her. He pressed an icon on the holographic screen of his device, suddenly making a green portal appear right beside them, swirling slowly.

"I'm so sorry, Ash…" the Satan Soul user apologized once more to the Pokémon trainer, "The guild means so much to you…" she continued to say as his eyes were trembling, "so I kept myself from telling you the truth…" she confessed, evidently ashamed as she turned away, "G-Goodbye…" she managed to stammer before walking towards the portal, as the requip mage and Gingka had already walked in. The raven haired teen was still in astonishment, but composed himself for a moment, raising his right hand into the air.

"Mira!" he cried out, catching her attention as she turned and widened her eyes slightly to see him sticking up his index finger while curving his thumb to the side, "It'll be fine," he reassured to her with a forced grin, "You don't need to cry anymore," he added, much to her surprise before she smiled as well, departing the universe through the rift, which disappeared moments later. Once she left, the expression of the Pokémon trainer shifted into a frown as his lips quivered.

"Ash… are you gonna be okay?" Clemont asked worriedly, seeing him shaking.

"I-I don't know…" he stuttered out with a sniffle, "I just… can't believe it…" he managed to say as a few tears dropped out of his shut eyes.

"Pika…" his partner squeaked as he too was stunned that the guild they had fought for and became a part of had disbanded.

 **EPILOGUE**

"Ergh…" the Omni Force member grunted as he slowly opened his eyes, lying down upon the plush surface of a bed. It had been about a month since his journey in Kalos had come to an end, but he could still the bittersweet feeling of what conspired before he even left. He sat up, glancing over to his left and gasping lightly to see his crush sleeping beside him. It took a few moments for him understand what was going on as a red blush spread across his cheeks. He had come over from his universe to hers in an effort to try and speak with her about what had happened, but there had been nothing but awkward silence between the two since they met up. Her brother and sister were also there, working at a tavern as there were no jobs for any of them to take with the guild gone. The aspiring Pokémon master noticed that his trademark hat was missing from his head, lying on the dresser beside the divan, along with the fact that his jacket was partially unzipped open.

' _We must've fallen asleep during overtime…_ ' he inwardly realized, looking over at the white haired beauty as he remembered that they had worked late into the night, while her siblings were out gathering groceries and such. He also recalled something else that conspired just yesterday, clenching the sheets tightly in his hands.

 **FLASHBACK**

" _She never told you?!" a shocked Lisanna inquired after cleaning a glass at the counter._

" _Not until the very last minute…" Ash replied, glancing away ashamedly, "I don't think she even wanted to tell me what happened…" he added as the brim of his cap covered his eyes._

" _Well knowing you," Elfman began, chiming into the conversation, "it'd be hard to just tell you that the guild's gone," he stated, folding his arms over his chest._

" _Elf, you're not helping!" his younger sibling shouted, causing him to grimace in realization as he saw the look on the raven haired teen's face become more depressed, "Ash… we're all upset about what happened…" she pointed out to him in a concerned tone, "I think it was really hard on everyone to see Master just let the guild go like that after everything…" she explained, making him bite his bottom lip in frustration as he shook._

" _I've barely been able to get over it," the Beast Soul user mentioned as his hands closed into fists, "If I hadn't destroyed the guild back then, maybe…" he tried to say, but couldn't as he turned away in frustration, remembering how he was manipulated into the acts that conspired during their battle against Tartaros._

" _Huh…" his sister sighed deeply, "Both of you need to forget about the past and look to the future by getting stronger," she advised seriously to both of them, placing her own extremities at her hips, "Ash, you should try talking to Mira about all this," she told the Pokémon trainer, "I think you're the one that needs to," she added, making him perk up._

" _Pika pi…" Pikachu squeaked worriedly, seeing him glance off to the side as he was in deep thought over what he should do. A determined expression came across his face soon afterwards, as he was prepared to do what was right._

 **END FLASHBACK**

' _That's right,_ ' he inwardly stated, looking back over at the sleeping form of the take-over wizard, ' _Even if everything she said hurt, that doesn't mean I can't get over it and tell her that I'll be okay,_ ' he told himself in a reassuring manner, managing to grin as he brushed a few strands of her hair aside to see her face, noticing that her bangs were down rather than pinned up. Her eyes suddenly started to open however, causing him to grimace in fright as he remembered that he was in the same bed with her.

"Ash…?" she uttered upon seeing him there, sitting herself up, "What's… going on?" she asked, rubbing her tired eyes with her fingers.

"Uh… I think we worked ourselves to sleep last night…" he replied nervously as a drop of sweat rolled down from the side of his head, "Elfman and Lisanna must've put us in here to rest up," he mentioned, glancing around for a moment.

"Guess so…" his crush agreed in a quiet tone, surprising him a little as he looked back to see the despondent expression in her eyes.

"Mira… we need to talk about what happened," he suddenly said, making her perk up out of shock, "I don't want you to keep thinking that you hurt me by telling the truth…" he explained, clutching the bedsheets tightly, "Hearing you say what happened didn't make it easy…" he confessed as he glanced off to the side, "but I can't just make it seem like your fault," he declared, looking over at her again, "A lot of things happened…" he noted, stopping himself from speaking to get a response from her.

"Ash…" she started to say, "I didn't want to tell you because I knew it would throw you off your game during the Kalos League and such," she told him as he listened on worriedly, "And I knew that the guild meant so much to you," she added, trembling a little, "It hurt to think about how you would feel, so-!" Her sentence was stopped at the moment the Pokémon trainer put his hand onto hers.

"Then let's get the guild back together!" he shouted in declaration, much to her surprise as her mouth gaped open slightly, "Everyone's still around, right?" he inquired, "So why don't we just round them all up and build our home again?" he suggested, placing his right fist against his the mark on his jacket. The Satan Soul user was stunned by his words, tearing up before suddenly embracing him in a warm hug.

"Oh Ash… thank you…" she said in gratitude, keeping him close as a light smile draped her lips, "Even when it seems like everything's lost, you always find a way to make us have some hope…" she noted before pulling herself away, wiping the tears out of her eyes, "That's why I love you so much…" she added in confession, making him instantly turn red in embarrassment. She had told him her feelings so many times before, but not once did he ever reciprocate them because he was somewhat afraid. This was the first time he felt like this however, and he wanted to make his own emotions clear.

"I-I…" he began to stutter, causing the girl beside him to perk up, "I… love you too, Mirajane," he finally said. She was admittedly shocked by his words, not expecting to hear them for quite some time. She knew of his true feelings, but did not think he would ever muster up the courage to say them. Without any second thought, she reached her right hand over and cupped his left cheek, leaning her head in. He blushed upon realizing that she was about to kiss him, remembering how she had done so after he had won the Kalos League and during that Christmas Eve not too long ago. He was evidently nervous as he had never done it back, but willed himself to close his eyes and arch forward, touching his lips against hers. The sweet feeling of the kiss felt so enticing as he deepened it with her, feeling as if it could last forever. However, neither of them noticed the door to the room swing open.

"Good morning~!" Lisanna sang with an apron over her form as she was wearing a blue sweater and green shorts underneath it, while her brother was right behind her with Pikachu on his shoulder, "You two finally ready for-?" She stopped her sentence, widening her eyes upon seeing the pair in bed locking lips, much to her surprise. "HUUUHHHH?!" she exclaimed, making them immediately cease their kiss as they gasped and blushed to see the others standing there.

"I-I-It's not what it looks like!" Ash stammered, pleadingly waving his arms around as his face became a bright crimson. However, his words were met with the giggles of the Animal Soul user, much to his confusion as he blinked.

"I knew you'd be able to turn Mira right around," she began, "but I never thought you'd go ahead and make her your girlfriend…" she admitted, causing him to have his mouth gape open out of shock.

"Sh-She's not my girlfriend!" he stuttered in claim, sweating madly and nervously at the thought.

"Don't be modest, Ash," the pigtailed girl advised as her sister was letting off a small smile, "We all know that Mira loves you just as much as you love her," she explained, "Isn't that right, Elf?" she guessed to her male sibling, who was still astonished by the sight of seeing someone lock lips with the barmaid.

"Y-Yeah…" he stammered in agreement, while the Electric type jumped off of his shoulder, crawling onto the divan and up to his master's shoulder.

"Pika pi!" he squeaked, nuzzling his cheek against his in an affectionate manner. He just gave off a sheepish smile while hearing everyone else laugh, glad to know that he had helped the person he truly loved and cared for.

 **X**

"Hah… hah…" a fatigued Lysandre breathed as he stood shirtless in front of a mirror, having his hands clench the sink before him. Bandages were draped all over his torso and back as red stains were vividly apparent on them. He was recalling the traumatic instance where he had almost been incinerated by the protector of Kalos, only to be saved by mere inches at the hands of an ally. He grimaced upon feeling the sting of his wounds, which continued to persist as he clenched his teeth together.

"That's going to leave quite the scar…" a voice pointed out, causing him to perk up and turn to see a familiar figure standing behind him. He was a man who had a black helmet with a purple visor upon his head, making his face visible through it as it appeared repulsive, being long and thin with a wide mouth, greyish skin, a flattened nose, dark lines underneath his eyes, and thin black lips. He wore silver gauntlets, boots, and shoulder pads on his black jacket. With that, he was sporting a black bodysuit, which had some purple lines and a silver collar that covered his entire neck.

"Eon…" the orange haired man uttered, slowly turning to face him, "Why… did you rescue me then?" he asked, managing to stand up fully with a grunt, "I failed to recreate my ideal world…" he recalled, clenching his fists angrily, "and now there's no chance I can do it again…" he mentioned before slamming his extremity against the sink, causing it to shatter into pieces.

"You know what they say," the time walker began, catching his attention, "what doesn't kill you… makes you stronger," he stated as he walked up to him, "I saved your life because you didn't hesitate to try and take your own," he told him with narrowed eyes, "That ambition to put an end to all things is exactly what I desire," he explained, reaching into his coat to grab something, "Now…" he continued, pulling out an MPG that glowed an ominous red as he handed it to him, "will you join me to fulfill our mission and our desires?" he asked him. The former leader of Team Flare was admittedly surprised, but didn't hesitate to take the device into his hand.

"I will," he answered, pressing his right thumb against the center of the machine.

 **END**

 **Uh oh. Lysandre's still alive and kicking apparently, and Eon is working with him. What's to come from that team-up?**

 **In the meantime, Ash and Mirajane are finally canonical! At least in this fanfic line. I would like to see someone try something centered around Ash and Mira for another fic. In fact, why don't you guys come up with something? Whether it be a drabble of sorts or a full-on story, I'd be really glad to see something of worth.**

 **And now, it's time to reveal the sneak peek for one of my future writings! What will it be? Let's find out!**

 **SNEAK PEEK**

" **Hey Gingka," Ben chimed in, catching the attention of the beyblader as he glanced over at him, "so what's this whole thing I've been hearing about you getting into a threesome?" he questioned with a devious smirk, causing his eyes to immediately bulge open out of shock before his face turned a scarlet red.**

" **Wait, what?" Rex uttered in surprise, turning with both Ash and Naruto upon hearing the last word of the question.**

" **H-H-How did you know… about that?!" the shaggy haired man asked, stuttering all the while in embarrassment.**

" **Cana," the Biomnitrix bearer answered simply, folding his arms over his chest as he saw him hunch over in defeat, "Gotta say, I never thought you'd be the guy to do that kinda stuff," he admitted.**

" **They were both drunk…" he mentioned out of exasperation, trembling in place.**

" **Wait, so Gingka had a threesome?" the jinchuriki inquired, tilting his head to the side, "With who?" he questioned with an arched eyebrow.**

" **Skyla and Erza," the Omni Force replied, trotting over to the others, "And the best part is Jellal doesn't know…" he mentioned as they all gasped in shock.**

" **Well, that's nothing compared to how Ash decided to get Mirajane pregnant only a few days after they got married!" the beyblader shouted, pointing at the Pokémon trainer, who blushed instantaneously.**

" **I-It was our honeymoon!" he stuttered in claim, "And what about Ben?" he questioned, causing everyone to glance over at their group leader, "I heard that Rainbow pushed him around into doing that kind of stuff…" he muttered, making him grimace in realization.**

" **Whoa, seriously?" the evo questioned with a blink of his eyes.**

" **That was a long time ago!" the bearded man yelled as his face reddened, "And you knocked up Kuvira before you even decided to marry her!" he pointed out accusingly, causing him to gasp.**

" **W-Well, Naruto… uh…" he tried to say, but couldn't as he looked to see the smirk on the shinobi's face, "I… don't have any dirt on you…" he confessed, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.**

" **Ha!" the ninja laughed, "It's nice that we're getting to talk like this after so long," he noted, glancing over at his house, "especially since all of us are about to be parents one way or another," he added, making his comrades all blush out of embarrassment.**

" **Too bad we had to get kicked out of Hinata's baby shower…" the raven haired man said as he looked back at the home they were in the backyard of.**

" **Ash… it's a** _ **baby shower**_ **," his best friend grumbled in response, placing his hand against his face out of exasperation, much to his confusion as he tilted his head to the side.**

" **Pika pi, pika," Pikachu squeaked to the others from afar with a sigh, as they had listened into the conversation.**

" **Sep…" Sceptile scoffed, folding his arms over his chest before glancing away.**

" **Grooo?" Steelix uttered in confusion, blinking rapidly. Scizor said nothing as he continued to punch the air around him, practicing fluently. From afar, Greninja was leaning against a tree, eyeing his master as he started up another conversation with the men.**

" **So the Kanto League, huh?" Ben inquired while arching an eyebrow, "And you don't have to go through the whole gym badge collecting and tournament again?" he questioned, somewhat perplexed.**

" **Actually, they're letting me challenge the Champion's League because my chance was lost after what happened with Team Flare back then," he explained as a response, "Plus, they've got a new rule saying that a challenger has to face the Champion's League of his or her home region," he mentioned to them, causing them to all perk up in interest.**

" **So you're one step closer to your dream…" Gingka noted, placing his right hand onto his pal's shoulder, "You've got plenty of people to thank for that," he pointed out as he smiled back at him.**

" **Yeah," he agreed, "You guys, my other friends, my Pokémon…" he listed off in remembrance while glancing up at the sky, "Everyone's been a big part of making us stronger," he stated, getting nods in response from the rest of the group. Listening in from one of the larger tree branches was Gallade, who looked at his hands in frustration, clenching his teeth together tightly. Despite his efforts in his Mega Evolved form, he had only managed to battle Medicham to a draw in his first battle since returning to his trainer. The sheer shame of failing to win haunted him, as he thought it meant that he wasn't strong enough. However, upon hearing the words Ash was saying about being a strong enough trainer to challenge champions, he glanced over at his Pokémon in particular. Pikachu didn't seem like a worthy opponent in his eyes, so he put his focus onto Greninja, who was still lying against the tree nonchalantly.**

" **Gal…" the Psychic/Fighting type growled, believing that he was acting arrogant with his laid back behavior. He jumped down from the tree, landing in front of him and catching his attention.**

" **Ja?" he croaked in confusion, batting open his right eye to see the Blade Pokémon there.**

" **Ga gallay!" he demanded in an angered tone, causing the other creatures to perk up as they heard his shouts.**

" **Gre nin?" the Water/Dark type asked, folding his arms over his chest after standing up from his seat.**

" **Gal gal lay gallay!" the one in front of him yelled in response, evidently frustrated as rage was building in his eyes.**

" **Neen ja…" the Ninja Pokémon advised, stepping out to place a hand onto his shoulder. However, he quickly backed off, making his right arm glow a bright green and sharpen before he swung it out to strike his target, sending him crashing into the wooden fence.**

" **What was that?!" the raven haired man asked upon hearing the sound of splintering wood. The rest of his comrades turned to see the dust billowing from the point of the impact, as it dissipated to reveal Greninja lying there in a heap, groaning out of agony before glaring out at Gallade.**

" **Ja…" he growled underneath his scarf-like tongue.**

" **Gal lay…" the Psychic/Fighting type challenged, making a gesture for him to attack, while everyone else looked on in shock.**

 **END SNEAK PEEK**

 **Whoa! Why is Gallade attacking Greninja?! What are the first five members of the Omni Force doing gathered at Naruto's home?! So many questions, and so many answers to come!**

 **Catch you guys later!**

 _ **Thanks for the save, Greninja… but… your hand…**_

 **Mirajane Strauss**

 **To Greninja after retrieving Chespie from the megalith Zygarde**


End file.
